Kamen Rider Bloodstone
by starofjustice
Summary: A new school with kids just like him seemed like the perfect thing, but all supernatural hell is about to break loose and Nigeki and his new friends are going to end up right in the middle... (FEATURING THE CAST OF UNDERTALE)
1. Chapter 1: Kindred

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 1 – Kindred**

 **I've touched up the first few chapters to make sure the characters of Undertale have a definite presence a little sooner. They're a very prominent part of this story, I promise you that.**

* * *

A low, hoarse wind blew through the barren trees and tossed the girl's long hair up. She squeezed her eyes shut and sucked in a deep breath of the cool air to calm herself. The yellow sky and the leafless trees were strange, and the headstones lining the path to the main building were unsettling. But the blood-red ocean was strangely reassuring, and if nothing else, this school couldn't possibly be any worse than the two schools before this one. Here she'd be around other kids she actually had something in common with. Something _big_. She clenched her fist and declared to herself, she'd definitely make friends at _this_ school.

And she kicked the ground to start her bike rolling down the steep hill where she'd stopped. Her surroundings stopped seeming so intimidating as they whizzed past, and she allowed herself to feel a little more confidence about the upcoming year. She wondered how many kids there'd be in her homeroom, what she should say when she met them or if she should let them come to her…

Perhaps her attention should have been on the path, because she suddenly rounded a bend and a boy on foot seemed to appear out of nowhere in front of her. She screamed in surprise and leaned hard away from him, crashing her bike against one of the trees and sending her tumbling into the grass. At the same time the boy tried to hurl himself out of her way, but he slipped on a patch of gravel and crashed headfirst into a cluster of tombstones, smashing one in half with his forehead. A pool of red seeped out from under his bag.

"Are you okay?!" she screamed and crawled over to take a look. She froze as she spotted the redness on the ground beside him and the enticing smell drifting from it. It was _blood_.

But then the boy groaned and rolled onto his back, and she could see there was none of it on him, just a dark red stain forming in one corner of his bag. He met her eyes for a second and she blushed, embarrassed at having mistaken the blood for his. Then she thought to ask if the blood wasn't his, where was it coming from? The boy sniffed once, groaned in dismay and pulled out a plastic bag with only a small pool of ruby-red liquid remaining in one corner, which had obviously been popped when he fell. "Damn it," he groaned then held the bag to his mouth and swallowed the blood still left inside. As he did she noticed how his canine teeth stuck out ever so slightly farther than most people's.

"You're a vampire too!" she exclaimed before she could stop herself.

"Isn't that something we're supposed to keep secret?" the boy asked. He muttered a curse and threw his empty blood bag into the trees, then extended his hand to her and helped her up.

"Well, yeah…," she replied sheepishly. "Just a little glad to see another one." She looked him over, noticing first of course the green blazer, tan slacks and white dress shirt that marked the uniform of the school she'd been heading for when she'd almost run him down. Despite having just smashed through solid rock with his head the only sign was few motes of dust clinging to his face and shoulders he was brushing off. His face was thin, almost feminine in its shape, and his black hair hung until it just touched the neckline of his blazer. His eyes were a rich shade of blue that she thought looked regal somehow, but as she was looking at them she realized how intently he was squinting at her.

"…don't I know you from somewhere?" he asked. "I'm sure I saw you before, except you had lighter hair."

"Oh! I'm Moka. Moka Akashiya!" she said, looking away. She wondered frantically how to try to explain that, if it might drive someone away or not, especially with them being another vampire.

He nodded thoughtfully and bowed. "Pleasure to meet you, Moka. Nigeki Hitoribo," he introduced himself. "Again, if this wasn't our first."

" _The_ Hitoribos?" Moka asked, bright green eyes going a little wide. Hitoribo was one of the more prominent vampire clans, or so she remembered her family saying when telling her to be on her best behavior before one of their big parties. Was that where they'd seen each other before…?

"Yeah," Nigeki said but waved his hand dismissively. "Would you mind keeping it to yourself, though? My father wants me keeping a low profile at school."

"Of course!" Moka said, giving him her best smile. He smiled back and color rushed to her cheeks, but she prayed he didn't notice.

"Well then, thanks, but we'd probably better get going," Nigeki nodded and pulled her bike up for her. They walked through the lifeless forest up to the building on the other side, which looked more like an ancient gothic cathedral than what it actually was, with the dark gray stone, turrets and huge archways. A banner was hung over the main doors with huge red characters reading "WELCOME TO YOUKAI ACADEMY."

* * *

Nigeki seemed to disappear into thin air while Moka was locking up her bike. She looked around a little before realizing she had to report to her first class, and then was surprised to see him at a desk next to the windows. On the floor next to him was a brand new book bag, with no huge blood stain in the corner. That explained it. Moka slipped into the desk next to his, not quite noticing she was cutting off a girl with bright blue hair and a yellow sweater vest instead of a jacket.

"Why'd you run away like that?" she whispered over to him. "I didn't say anything, did I?"

"No, my dad called me to check in on me and I had to run and buy a new bag before classes started," Nigeki replied. "I'm sorry, I really am. But he does this all time. He called to check in on me five times before I even got here. And if he calls me, I _have_ to answer." As he said that he reached into his bag and flipped a switch on the side of his phone to put in on vibrate. "Well, most of the time," he corrected.

" **Good morning!** " exclaimed an extremely peppy voice, and Moka giggled as Nigeki actually jumped in his seat in surprise. The voice exactly matched its owner, a young blonde woman in a brown miniskirt and tiger-striped tube top, with a necklace shaped like a cat's bell around her neck and thick red glasses. "Welcome to homeroom! I'll be your teacher, Miss Nekonome, mew!"

"Mew?" a few confused voices raised at the same time.

"Now, before we begin, let me just remind everyone of this school's most important rule: you're to remain in human form at all times!" Miss Nekonome informed the class. "We want to keep things nice and friendly here, and more importantly nice and friendly _out there_ so the humans will stay nice and friendly _with you_. This is going to be a very special year because not only do we have monster teens from all over the country joining us, we even have some from an underground kingdom that finally found their freedom! That's going to be part of the secret all of you are expected to keep, though."

Nigeki gazed absently out the window as Miss Nekonome continued on briefly in this vein. Moka didn't entirely blame him, she was sure he was thinking the same thing she was: they both belonged to one of the breeds of monster that was most reviled by human beings, as she'd had the chance to see firsthand. Having to avoid provoking violence from humans was nothing the two of them needed to hear, she was sure. After a few minutes, Nigeki leaned over and whispered to her. "Hey, what do you want to bet she's a bakeneko?"

"You can already tell?" Moka giggled quietly, although she'd guessed something along those lines herself.

Their discussion ended when another student next to them spoke up suddenly. "But who cares about humans?" asked a broad-shouldered boy with wiry brown hair and a sneer on his craggy face. He had two metal studs in each ear and one in his lower lip. Two other boys in the row behind him sneered right along with his comment. "They don't have strength, or speed, or anything like a monster does. They have to get all their powers from their weapons. Even the Belmonts were nothing without all that magic crap they had."

"Well, Mister…," Miss Nekonome started to reply, then had to stop and check a class roster in her hand, "…Saizou Komiya, the Belmont line is an example of exactly why it's so important not to make ourselves targets…" she answered, but Nigeki sighed and looked away again. He sat through the rest of the first period in silence and scowling slightly, like the line of questioning had touched on something uncomfortable for him. As soon as the period was over he picked up his bag and left the room as quickly as he could. Moka held out her hand but he didn't seem to notice, and she wondered worriedly about what had gotten under his skin like that.

* * *

Moka had a while to think about it, as she had whirlwind tour of her other classes to make it through. Most of them went right over her head as she tried to puzzle out what might've been on her new friend's mind, until she got to her Home Economics class.

"Hello, girls! And…also some boys, looks like," said the teacher with the brightest, friendliest smile on her face. "I'm Mrs. Dreemurr, or Toriel, if you're feeling friendly, I suppose."

She was a tall woman in a purple dress, with generous curves and a slightly plump face, lightly wrinkled around the mouth as if she'd had a habit of smiling a lot for a long time. She had waves and waves of curly white hair, but somehow it seemed implausible that it could come from age. It looked so pure, almost like fur.

"See?" one boy in front of Moka whispered to another next to him. "This teacher's a complete babe, isn't she? I told you this was a good idea."

Moka was startled to hear that kind of talk, but she studied Mrs. Dreemurr's face as she went around asking every student in her class their name and warmly welcoming them to school. She seemed even more excited to be teaching them than some of the students seemed to be to finally be away from home. And Moka had never really thought about such a thing before, but there _was_ something about Mrs. Dreemurr that seemed inviting in more than a friendly way…

"And what do I call you, child?"

The vampiress almost fell out of her chair in surprise when she realized she'd been thinking so hard about Mrs. Dreemurr she didn't even notice the teacher was standing right in front of her. "Um…hello! My name is Moka! Akashiya. It's a pleasure to be here, miss."

Mrs. Dreemurr smiled and sighed wistfully. "I _wish_ I was that young again," she said, and a few scattered chuckles went up. She finished greeting her students and taught them how to make maki rolls, a fairly simple dish but one she seemed proud to show off to them. As the next class was about to begin, though, she took Moka aside.

"Are you all right, child?" Mrs. Dreemurr whispered to her. "You seemed distracted and worried when you came in."

"How could you tell?" Moka asked in astonishment.

Mrs. Dreemurr smiled faintly and put a supportive hand on her shoulder. "I might be new to life around here but I'm not new to life. If you have a real problem, or you know someone who does, you shouldn't be expected to carry that weight all by yourself."

Moka looked up at the teacher and smiled. "You're right! I won't let him get so upset! I'll find out what's going on! Thank you Dreemurr-sama!"

Toriel waved and smiled faintly as Moka hurried out. "Can't help myself, can I?" she murmured to herself, hoping this child's time turned out as well as the last one's.

Whether she liked it or not, she had a feeling she'd be dealing with Moka Akashiya and that friend of hers herself, soon enough.

* * *

It wasn't until break period that Moka tracked Nigeki down again, finding him sitting on a bench in the quad sipping a can of green tea. He waved at her as he saw her coming and waiting as she bought a can of tomato juice from a vending machine nearby and sat down next to him.

"Is…everything okay?" she asked him uncertainly after a minute of uncomfortable silence. "You left in such a hurry…"

"I just don't like being reminded of what people think should be done to vampires. Or even the ones who want to _be_ vampires," Nigeki answered her with a sigh. "I've been having these, like, really bad headaches lately when I get anxious. Nobody's really sure why. That was one of the reasons my family sent me here instead of having a private tutor like my brothers. They thought having friends and activities and stuff would help take my mind off my little…condition."

Moka looked him in the eye and said, a little shyly, "Well, I wouldn't mind having a few friends here either."

He sighed but looked up at her with a smile that seemed tired but appreciative. "Thanks, Moka," he said.

"We'd like having some nice, pretty friends like that too," said a voice with a familiar sneer, and Nigeki groaned as the boy with the piercings from homeroom seemed to appear from nowhere behind a column with the other two boys from behind him in class behind him now too. "Why's a smoking hot babe like you hanging out with a wuss like him who gets sick just from people talking about the Belmonts around him?" Saizou jeered at Nigeki.

"It's not like that," Nigeki said, clenching his teeth.

Moka stood up and interposed herself between Nigeki and Saizou. "Could you please leave us alone? We don't want any trouble."  
"Neither do we," said Saizou. "Do we boys? We just want to make friends with a pretty girl, isn't that what you said you wanted?"

Nigeki grunted and got up, shooting Saizou an angry scowl. "Didn't you hear what she said? Just leave her alone, why can't you-"

Saizou's hand shot out, grabbed Nigeki around the throat and lifted him off the ground. "I heard what she said, she wants to make new friends at school. Why are _you_ trying to make that hard for her?"

"Let him go!" Moka screamed, and Saizou froze, but it wasn't on account of what she'd said. Nigeki's eyes suddenly flashed a bright yellow almost like headlights and with a snarl he kicked Saizou in the chest, knocking him back into his two cronies.

"Don't push me," Nigeki warned. "You have no idea what you're getting into."

Moka took him by the hand and hurried away, casting a worried look over her shoulder at Saizou, who glared back angrily as the two vampires slipped away, unaware others had seen what happened.

* * *

Moka was relieved to find the roof empty and stopped to collect herself. Nigeki clutched his head for a minute but leaned against the railing and looked over at Moka with his normal dark blue eyes. "Damn it," he muttered. "I'm sorry, Moka. I haven't even been here one day and everything's going wrong."

Seeing her chances of befriending someone in this strange new place slipping away, Moka took a bold step. "Well, maybe we have something in common."

"What's that?"

She clutched a silver cross hanging from a black choker around her neck, with a red gem that looked almost like an eye in the middle. "You see this? My mother made this…it suppresses the aggressive part of me. If it came off somehow, I'd turn back into my true form."

"Why would she do that?" Nigeki asked.

Moka's face fell slightly. "I don't know. I assume it was really important, but she never told me. It's kind of like you, huh? You try to hold in your aggression, seems like. I mean…you don't seem like a violent person. Or at least, you seem like you don't want to be."

"Of course I don't want to be! What good does fighting do?" Nigeki replied, and Moka smiled with relief. "Maybe I should get your mother to make me one of those…"

"I don't know where she is," Moka replied sadly.

"I'm sorry," Nigeki sighed, and looked away.

Moka placed a dainty hand on his shoulder. "I'm the one who brought it up."

After a minute Nigeki looked back at her and managed a smile. "Feel like getting some air? I need to get away from here for a while…I wouldn't blame you if you said no, though, I realize how creepy that must sound coming from somebody you just met," he said, his smile turning sheepish. Then he laughed a limp little laugh. "God, I'm bad at this. I'm sorry."

A warm sensation came over Moka that she'd felt a few times in the past, almost a second presence lightly guiding her actions. When she'd seen someone or something truly lost and vulnerable. It reminded her of someone extremely familiar yet whose name or likeness she could never quite place.

Gently she took his hand. "I'd really like that," she said with a smile.

* * *

The barren woods surrounding the school were less forbidding now that Moka was there with a friend. Nigeki had managed to relax in the solitude, but he hadn't said anything else about what was bothering him as Moka had hoped he might. In fact he kept surreptitiously glancing over his shoulder as they walked, obviously trying to keep her from noticing but not succeeding.

After a while Nigeki tried to break the awkward silence that was growing between them. "Hey, Moka? You seem really eager to make friends, even if it's with someone as weird as me. I don't think I get that, people would probably be lining up to make friends with a girl as pretty as you."

Moka made a sound of disgust. "If they're anything like that Saizou boy, I'll pass, thanks."

"But if they're anything like me, you'll say 'sure, let's go for a walk on the far side of the grounds where nobody knows where we are,' I guess," Nigeki pointed out.

"After you saved us from those bullies," she reminded him.

"I still shouldn't be taking you so far away from the main buildings. I really am blowing it already, aren't I?" Nigeki laughed a little mournfully. "I'm supposed to lay low, but it hasn't even been one day and I already got into a fight…HOLY SHIT!"

Suddenly Nigeki shoved Moka away and she landed in a heap, but before she could demand what he was doing she saw him hurl himself backwards just before a giant rock crashed to the ground where they'd been a second ago.

Walking up the path the pair of vampires had just taken was Saizou, with his two fellow bullies right behind, that seeming immovable sneer still on his face. "You just had to go and make it personal, didn't you, punk?" he asked.

Nigeki got his feet and held up his hand. "Look," he said with a sigh, "I'm from the Hitoribo family."

"Is that supposed to make me change my mind? You gonna call your daddy to come fight for you or some crap like that?" Saizou retorted, the others laughing.

Nigeki dug into his book bag and produced a stack of bills. "It means I can make it worth your while to leave us alone." Suddenly Saizou's friends grabbed him by the arms, and Saizou himself kneed Nigeki in the stomach. He snatched the money from Nigeki's hand and kicked him in the stomach again.

"You just made my day even better, rich boy," Saizou said before he punched Nigeki in the face. Nigeki's head jerked back and a stream of dark blood dripped down his face as he stared at Saizou with disgust in his eyes.

"Is this what you _do_?" Nigeki grunted. "Push people around to make you feel bigger or some garbage?"

"Just giving them what they want," Saizou said. "Humans expect me to be a monster, then I'll give them one. I've done it, rich boy. You should try it too, the perks are pretty nice…"

As this played out, Moka watched in confusion. Nigeki was a vampire just like her, one of the strongest of monsters. And unlike her, his power wasn't suppressed by anything. Surely he could easily pull himself free, but instead he took it as Saizou punched him in the face again and knocked Nigeki back into the arms of the other thugs. Saizou brought back his fist, coated with a dark layer of Nigeki's blood, to punch him again.

"NO!" Moka screamed and ran up to grab his arm. Nigeki gasped and looked at her in anger and yanked one arm free to try to push Moka away.

"You shouldn't be-" he started to say, but his palm hit the Rosario on her neck. Instantly her body went agonizingly cold, then a burst of heat seemed to explode out from the Rosario. There was a flash of light that flung all of them around the clearing.

Saizou and his friends got up, ready to teach Moka a lesson about getting in their way, but the vampire girl they saw wasn't the one who'd been there a minute ago. She looked taller, more poised, her hair ice-white now, and her eyes an angry shade of red that didn't look the slightest bit impressed by their superior numbers.

"So, you want to be a monster, huh?" she asked, her voice slightly deeper and vastly more confident. "You look like you've got a long way to go to me."

"Why don't you take another look?" Saizou grinned and his body started to bloat, shredding out of his uniform. In a few seconds he was eight feet tall, his head stooped forward slightly from the weight of his massive arms that hung nearly to his knees. Rows of bony spikes had grown from his shoulders, chest and elbows and covered his fingers like gloves, ending in clawed tips on his fingers. His two friends had undergone identical transformations behind him. Moka had no trouble recognizing them for orcs, strong monsters but almost to a one stupid, arrogant and always looking for a fight.

Then Saiziou rushed at Moka, thick saliva spraying from the three-foot tongue swinging out of his mouth. Moka grimaced as some landed on her uniform, but as soon as Saizou came close enough she threw a high sweeping kick that connected to the side of his head and knocked him down. Immediately he was back up and grabbed at her leg but she easily backflipped out of his reach, rebounded off a tree and performed a vicious scissor kick that connected with his chin and knocked him flat on his back.

"Pitiful." Saizou roared and charged her with his gigantic arms outstretched but Moka turned and caught his hands against her own. Impossibly, she dug in her heels and held the huge orc in a stalemate, not budging from her place.

The other two orcs exchanged glances and were about to help Saizou when from behind them Nigeki snarled. His eyes were burning yellow now, and his movements were stiff as he got to his feet.

"I tried to avoid this," he muttered. "I tried…but…you…HEN…SHIN!"

A black belt with a buckle made of tarnished silver appeared out of nowhere around his waist. In the center of the buckle was a large circular gem, mostly a dark red but with veins of black that seemed to shift and throb inside it as the two orcs watched.

But then the gem blazed for a second, and a strange red clay-like matter started forming on Nigeki's body on top of his uniform. The clots quickly grew together into a thick red armor around his body, running through with black lines like veins that pulsed just like the ones in the gem. Black boots and gauntlets with curved, slender blades running up to his elbows formed on him, and a white orb appeared behind him, opened outward into a pyramid shape behind him and then closed around his face, forming into a skull-like mask. The burning yellow of Nigeki's eyes still shined through the holes.

Then he suddenly dashed at them and slashed them both across the chests with the blades on his gauntlets. Blood oozed from the wounds and the orcs looked down at them in disbelief, then over at Nigeki as he stared them down and waited for them to make the next move.

They did, splitting apart and rushing him head-on. Both orcs smashed a fist into his chest that he took without budging, then grabbed them by their shoulders and flipped them over his head with a crash.

Meanwhile Moka broke her deadlock with Saizou when she suddenly jumped and slammed her knee into his chin with a crack that seemed to echo throughout the clearing for a second. He staggered away for a few steps and Moka knocked him down with a spinning jump kick of terrifying grace.

"Know your place," she said as disdainfully as she could then took her attention off her opponent for the moment to look at how the rest of the fight was going. Nigeki, or whatever he'd become, fought with a style that was strong but crude, relying entirely on his superior force as he walked straight into the orcs' punches before knocking them flying with astonishingly powerful punches of his own.

"I'll get you for that, you miserable bitch!" Saizou bellowed behind her and charged, but with the most flawless calm Moka somersaulted over his head then slammed her foot right between his shoulders to knock him toward Nigeki, who grabbed the orc, hoisted him above his head and bodyslammed him into the other two.

Suddenly the yellow light from Nigeki's eyes burned twice as brightly. He held his arms out at his side and growled as the redness covering his body started to shimmer slightly. From where she was Moka could feel an incredible power gathering in him. Then, he unleashed it.

" **Blood Riser!** " a gravelly demonic voice spoke from his belt, and Nigeki roared and smashed his fists down on the ground in front of him. A crack appeared and stretched across the ground to where the orcs lay, and suddenly a geyser of dark red liquid erupted from underneath them and sent the three thugs spinning out of sight above the trees.

The skeletal mask segmented apart and pulled back away from Nigeki's head before disappearing along with his belt. The red armor covering the rest of his body seemed to burst, spraying crimson droplets everywhere that sank into the ground.

He looked Moka in the eyes, his teeth clenched and a tear of frustration slipping out his eye and down one cheek. Then before she could stop him he'd run off into the trees.

* * *

 **Well, haven't done a work like this in a while, but here it is, and hopefully not too bad.**

 **Don't know how well I made it clear, but I was trying to indicate that when Moka's Rosario was unlocked it had more to do with the opposing power of that and Nigeki's belt, which will be explored more down the road.**

 **But yeah, I'm trying something a little different, both for myself and the story of Rosario x Vampire. Hope you all enjoy.**


	2. Chapter 2: Charmed

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 2 – Charmed**

Youkai Academy began to buzz with rumors almost as soon as the school year began, but one of the most repeated ones concerned when three panicked boys had come barreling out of the woods behind the school screaming about another student who'd sliced their flesh and blasted them into the sky with a fountain of blood.

A few students got worried that some super-strong lunatic had gotten by the barrier somehow, but then someone put a name to the face of the leader of the victims. It was Saizou Komiya the notorious troublemaker who'd been transferred to Youkai Academy after being bounced out of another pair of schools. So that… _someone_ could keep him under close observation.

Immediately most of the students started to laugh behind Saizou's back that the big bully had been beaten at his own game the first time he even tried to start something with another student at Youkai Academy. But a few who crossed paths with the student he claimed was responsible paused and pulled back a few steps when he walked by.

The slender dark-haired boy wore a perpetual scowl on his face nobody recognized and who seemed all too eager to avoid others' company as well. He sat by himself at meals, didn't speak up in class and seemed to disappear into the dormitories as soon as classes had ended for the day. He'd even made a point of duck a pretty pink-haired girl who'd tried to initiate conversation with him a few times. All his hallmates heard from him were times when it sounded like someone in his room was trying to play the flute, and not very well.

Strangely nobody seemed to know the boy's family name, even his attackers who remembered him trying to buy them off. A few students swore Saizou had ranted it to them, but they couldn't seem to remember what it was anymore. In response to that other students had suggested they were afraid of the antisocial boy punching their faces in like he had Saizou's.

All that talk suited one girl just fine. An angry, violent loner was a challenge worthy of her talents. Plus it'd show that obnoxious pink-haired bimbo just where she rated.

It was going to be a good year.

* * *

Moka sighed as she looked up at the open window that she was pretty sure was the one to Nigeki's room. It had sounded like someone was practicing music but had stopped when she knocked, and her fears were confirmed that he had indeed jumped out the window to get away from her.

 _What a weakling_ , the derisive voice of her aggressive alter ego said from the back of her mind as the red gem in her Rosario shone. _He runs right into a fight but runs away from an ordinary girl._

"He's not like that!" Moka insisted, unwilling to give up on someone who was as afraid of himself as Nigeki seemed to be. "He tried to protect me when those bullies attacked us, he can't be a coward."

 _Then why can't he even explain himself to you?_ the other Moka pressed. _Should that be so hard to someone who was flinging orcs around and taking their strongest punches like they were nothing?_

Moka sighed. That was a point. Why was Nigeki going so far out of his way to avoid her since his fight with the orcs? There had to be a reason, and she wasn't ready to give up on hearing it just yet…

* * *

As the sun set, soft notes drifted through the forest near the edge of campus. Unnoticed by their maker, a bat-like shape flew down nearby.

Nigeki stood on a branch on one of the higher leafless trees overlooking the ocean while the sun seemed to sink into the blood-red waters. Held to his mouth was a brass flute and he slowly played a song he was starting to become familiar with but after a few seconds hit a sour note and grunted in aggravation. He glared at the instrument like it was at fault, then sighed and raised it to his lips again.

"That sounds nice," said a pleasant female voice from the ground, and Nigeki squawked in surprise, lost his balance and fell off the branch. His free hand whipped out and grabbed it, leaving him hanging there while he glanced down to see who'd startled him.

It was a girl with bright blue hair, wearing the uniform of Youkai Academy, but a yellow sweater vest instead of a jacket like most students did. She giggled lightly at the comical sight of Nigeki hanging from a tree branch by one hand then looked up at him with a smile so warm and friendly he almost let go. "What are you doing up there?" she asked.

He swung himself forward, then back and used his moment to swing himself into a crouch on the branch then stood up again before he answered. "I'm practicing my instrument."  
"Why are you practicing in a tree?" she said, completely unfazed.

"So people will think I'm crazy and leave me alone."

"It doesn't work."

Nigeki jumped down and landed in front of the girl, who didn't move from her spot. "Look," he said gently, "even I'm not crazy, I'm still no good with this thing."

"That doesn't mean you couldn't be," she said, meeting his gaze with her spellbinding purple eyes. "Why don't we go somewhere and you can play for me?"

Nigeki blinked as he felt disoriented for a second, remembering he was trying to avoid people, but looked back at the girl with her dazzling smile and eyes he could drown in, and smiled slightly back. "That's a good idea," he said.

She grinned even wider. "You learn quick," she said. "What's your name?"

"Ni…Nigeki," he replied, faintly aware he hadn't been interested in this a minute ago, but this girl was just so pretty and friendly.

"That's a nice name," the girl said. "My name's Kurumu…isn't that a nice name too?"

"Yes…that's a very nice name."

* * *

Kurumu led Nigeki a little further away from the school, and started to fan herself with her hand as she did. "Oh, isn't it hot today?" she asked, and popped the top button on her blouse. She smirked as Nigeki's eyes zeroed in on her chest even in his dull state of mind.

"Yes, so hot…when did it get so hot?" he asked as he unbuttoned and untucked his own shirt. Kurumu leered for a second before seeing something that froze her in her tracks.

"What's that?" she asked and started to reach out to touch her fingertip to a shiny black stain or scar on Nigeki's chest right over his heart, a little smaller than her clenched fist. But Nigeki lightly pushed her hand away.

"It's the symbol of my taint," he told her.

She raised an eyebrow incredulously. "Your _taint_?"

"When I was in the womb my mother was attacked by something…we call them Tears, like the kind you shed when you're sad," Nigeki dazedly explained. "My family thinks they're from somewhere in Makai Realm, but we're not sure. But I was infected, and when I get angry or upset that part of me can get stronger. When that part gets stronger…"

Kurumu looked at him with amused disbelief. "You're kidding me, right?"

But Nigeki shook his head. "When it gets stronger I lose control, I lash out…that's why my brother gave me the Bloodstone. It strengthens the monster part of me, to hold the Tear part back."

"That's cute, but you don't have to make up stories to make this more fun," Kurumu giggled. She made a note to call her mom about this, though. Since when was this something that happened?

But in the bushes nearby crouched a pink-haired beauty whose lower lip trembled with rage at what was going on.

 _So not just a coward but a philanderer too_ , said the Inner Moka. _He's willing to tell a tramp like that his secret, but not you, the one who tried to be an honest friend._

"It's not like that," Moka snapped quietly, but if what Nigeki had said was true it explained how he'd been cutting himself off from everyone. She was pretty sure she'd heard of an artifact called the Bloodstone once or twice as well. It was supposed to be some kind of talisman that could temporarily increase a vampire's innate powers, and vampires who'd owned it had used it in the past when going into battle. Supposedly they'd been able to wipe out entire groups of lesser monsters, but they were left weak after using the gem's powers.

"I'm not making it up," Nigeki droned, but Kurumu only shook her head and smiled.

"Well, if you're so broken up inside, maybe I can take your mind off it," she said, and pursed her lips and leaned closer to him.

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!" Moka screamed as she erupted from the bushes, pointing an accusing finger at Kurumu. She stomped over and grabbed Nigeki by the arm before Kurumu could complete her kiss and started to drag Nigeki away.

Kurumu smirked and slipped her hands onto her shapely hips. "Oh my _god_ , were you seriously spying on us? Are you _that_ jealous?"

Moka just glared at the other girl as she stomped away with her fellow vampire in tow. Kurumu made no move to stop them; she'd let this Moka stew in how out of her league she was for a while before finishing her off.

* * *

After a minute the main school building came into view and Moka sighed with relief, since at least it'd be easier to avoid that girl with lots of other students around. She looked back at Nigeki to make sure he was okay, but gaped in alarm to see a faint yellow light in his eyes like during the fight with Saizou.

And more than that he was mumbling something over and over again, "All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to the dust…All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust…"

"Nigeki?" Moka asked, but he just kept muttering the same nihilistic chant over and over. With more strength than she meant to, Moka grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him. "Cut it out! You're away from her now! Everything's okay!"

Nigeki's head bobbed violently back and forth at Moka's shaking before he gasped and twisted, breaking free but falling on his face in the process. "What happened?" he groaned.

"That girl did something to you…do you feel okay?"

"Girl," Nigeki answered, as if it was the first time he'd ever heard the word. "Yeah, a girl with blue hair, right? My head feels fuzzy…" Neither of them noticed a shiny black shell around his neck receding out of sight below his collar.

"Do you feel okay?" Moka asked again.

He took a minute to collect himself, then nodded. "I feel all right…but why are you here? Why have you been following me around even after that fight with the orcs?"

"Well, why did you run away?" Moka asked, turning the question back on him. "You're supposed to be here to make friends and join in, right? To keep that Tear thing from taking you over, that thing you told that girl about."

Nigeki sighed and stood up. "So I told her about that…and you heard it, huh?"

"Is it true?"

He sighed again. "Yes, it's true. The Bloodstone lets me transform into that armor I had on when we... the other you and I fought those orcs. If I start losing control of my emotions, I'm supposed to use the Bloodstone to enhance the vampiric part of me so I'm not overwhelmed. I've learned to suppress them pretty well, but there are times I just get pushed too far."

"But it doesn't start to come out if you feel good emotions, does it? That wouldn't make any sense," Moka said.

"No," Nigeki answered. "At least I don't think so. But if I lost control I'm sure I'd lash out at whoever's around. That's why I've been at home until now, and why I've been avoiding people since the fight. I don't need other idiots starting shit with me and getting maimed if I turn into one thing or the other."

All of a sudden she took his hand with hers. "I don't want to start a fight with you," Moka said, and managed a soft smile.

His instinct was to pull away, but he didn't. "If someone else does, and I lose it like I did around the orcs, you could get hurt."

Moka looked him straight in the face. "I don't have a lot of experience with this kind of thing…but I bet it's a lot less likely to happen if you have someone else around to help if things get rough for a while." She swallowed uncertainly as if doubting her own words, but Nigeki smiled a tired smile. Tired of fighting his inner demons himself, she hoped.

"If you're sure," he said, "I think I'll give it another try."

"I'm sure," Moka said and clenched his hand.

* * *

By the time they made it back to campus the sun was almost totally down. Moka lightly squeezed Nigeki's hand and turned down the path heading to the girls' dorm. "See you tomorrow?" she asked.

"Yeah, promise," Nigeki replied. "And Moka? I'm sorry I avoided you after the fight. Force of habit, I guess."

"Well, you won't do it again, so I forgive you," she said and playfully stuck out her tongue. "Good night."

"Good night," Nigeki echoed and made his way back to his own small room on the third floor. As he clicked on his desk lamp and got out his books to get started on his homework, he realized he was still smiling. An idea came into his head, and he checked the black stain above his heart.

It had shrunk by nearly half.

He wasn't aware of two pairs of eyes spying on him through the window as he buttoned up his shirt and got to work on his assignments.

A few hours later when he swallowed his nightly Hypnocil pill to keep himself from dreaming, he didn't notice one was still there.

* * *

The next day was cheerier. Classes were reassuringly normal, although her science teacher, a short, chubby blonde woman with thick glasses and overbite seemed to keep glancing furtively her way.

Alphys Alphaisa, an almost painfully fake name, was demonstrating how electrical current worked, spending almost two minutes showing in detail how she hooked up some copper wires from a portable generator, a silver lunchbox-sized device with a showy Jacob's Ladder on the top, to a purple and black robot doll with an overly-stylized bishonen's face with dark hair dangling down over one side of its face.

"Now you'll see not just how electricity works, but how a powerful artificial intelligence can work!" she declared proudly. "Mettaton-Chibi, go!"

"OOOOOOH YES," the robot doll declared in a reverberating voice, sounding almost aroused. It got up and struck a provocative pose, while Miss Alphaisa grinned like a maniac.

"Big deal!" a boy in the back called out. "So your little toy can talk!"

Miss Alphaisa smiled. "Oh, it can do a lot more than talk. Mettaton, tell us who the prettiest girl in this class is, huh?"

Most of the class groaned as the robot lifted one leg and spun around and around on its toe with one arm outstretched. They were obviously expecting it to end on Miss Alphaisa herself, but instead it pointed out into the students. The boys it pointed to leaned away to see who it meant, and Moka's face erupted in a flaming blush when she realized the robot was pointing out _her_.

"Nice pick, Mettaton," Miss Alphaisa smiled proudly, focusing her gaze on Moka. "Even a robot this small can learn to identify a beautiful girl. That's the wonders of modern technology! Impressed now, kiddo?"

The boy just cleared his throat and crossed his arms in answer to Miss Alphaisa's question. Hiding her face in her hands, Moka looked over at Nigeki, and he smiled supportively which got the young vampiress to lower her hands and smile back faintly. However she was so grateful to her friend's support she failed to notice the fuming blue-haired girl watching from behind him.

The teacher couldn't help noticing, though. Classroom intrigue around this girl, huh? She surreptitiously jotted down a note to herself. Maybe worth keeping an eye on…

* * *

Nigeki and Moka sat together at lunch, talking about the simple, harmless topic of what they were liking about school so far.

"Being around kids I have something in common with is nice," Moka said. "Even if…nobody else has really tried to talk me yet."

"They're just intimidated by your beauty," Nigeki said. "You can't really blame them for that, can you?"

She laughed, but looked at him seriously then. "How come you aren't?"

Nigeki opened his mouth to answer, then stopped, not sure what his answer even was. "Maybe I just haven't met enough pretty girls yet to know I should be," he said with a shrug.

"What about you?" Moka prompted. Nigeki shrugged. "You don't know?"

"I haven't really enjoyed being here before last night," he explained.

Moka smiled a little in reply but said nothing as she noticed something over his shoulder. Kurumu was sitting at a table surrounded by a group of boys but was staring hard at the two of them, violet eyes narrowed.

She doubted Kurumu had given up yet.

* * *

After class Nigeki excused himself to call his family. Moka couldn't help feeling a twinge of jealousy at that. Her family had hardly checked in on her at all since she'd been sent to live in the human world years ago. It was a big part of why she wasn't in any hurry to lose the first person interested in being her friend.

He'd agreed to meet her out in the quad, but Nigeki had hardly been gone a minute before he called out from behind and jogged up to her side with a smile. "So…what do you feel like doing this afternoon, beautiful?" he asked.

"Beautiful?" Moka asked, her cheeks coloring. Her eyelids drifted low and she looked away from Nigeki's face. She coughed and collected herself then asked, "Is everything okay at home? Did you talk about anything special with your family?"

Nigeki shrugged. "Oh just…," he paused, seeming to struggle for a second to find something to say. "...family stuff. You know."

"Not really."

He smiled and shrugged, then slipped his arm around Moka's shoulders and she felt herself blushing again. "Come on," he said, "Let's go somewhere nice and private."

"Okay…," Moka said. Did Nigeki really like her that much? Is that why he'd been so afraid of hurting her if he lost control of himself? They'd barely known each other for a week, and only been having civil conversations for about a day.

But she managed a smile. She'd met another vampire who at least tried not to be a complete psychopath. She shouldn't be looking a gift horse in the mouth with all those questions. She'd sworn she'd make friends and make this school experience great. What was she doing getting so suspicious?

* * *

"No, dad, I don't have twenty new friends yet. Are you seriously setting a quota for me or something?" Nigeki said in disbelief. "Yes, I think goals are fine, but I'm out of the house for the first time in forever, do you really think that's the way I should approaching this?"

He shifted the end of his phone away from his mouth so he could let out a sigh his father wouldn't hear as another repetition of what they expected from him in exchange for letting him go to school off the family estate. As soon as he detected an opening, Nigeki took it.

"Any word on Mei and Satsuki?...Yes dad, I do think you'd tell me if you had anything to tell, and you should even call me in class if you have to. But I should really be asking anyway."

Someone tapped him on the shoulder then. "Anyway, everything's fine, dad. I'll check in with you soon," said Nigeki, then he hung up and turned around to find Kurumu's smiling face looking back at him.

"Hi," she said pleasantly.

"I remember you. You're that girl who puts up with insane flutists."

"That's me!" she beamed.

"Well, nice to see you, but I'm supposed to meet somebody-" Nigeki started to say, but Kurumu stared right into his eyes, rubbed her abundant chest against his front with a giggle, and his vision seemed to swim. He staggered backward and fell on his butt, all strength leaving his body. Kurumu took his arm and hauled him to his feet, and all he knew to do was let her.

Kurumu wrapped her arms around his and leaned her head against his shoulder. "Let's go somewhere and you can show me how cool you really are…" she purred.

"Okay," Nigeki answered dully, and let her guide him away.

* * *

The day seemed warmer somehow as Moka walked beside Nigeki, searching for something to say but nothing came to mind. Somehow, she guessed, she'd thought things would come naturally after she'd managed to find someone interested in being friends at an actual monster school. But there she was, unable to break the silence with even another vampire.

"So, how you liking school so far?" Nigeki asked Moka with a smile.

"I'm liking it all right…but we talked that about at lunch, remember?" she reminded him.

Nigeki looked confused for a second but recovered. "Oh, yeah…! We did, didn't we? Well…thinking about any clubs to join?"

"I'm not sure. I was going to wait until the drive next week," Moka answered, chewing her lip thoughtfully.

He grinned. "Maybe we could join the same one. That'd be pretty cool, huh?"

Moka held her hands to her cheeks to hide her blush. "Yeah, that would be fun. Hey, do you think maybe I could have a sip from one of those blood bags you have sometime? I haven't had any of the real thing in forever," she looked at him, a sheepish little grin on her face.

He recoiled. "Blood bags?" he asked, looking at her aghast.

Moka clenched the strap of her bag. "You're not Nigeki," she said flatly.

Quickly he composed himself and stepped forward, smiling confidently. "Of course I am, what are you talking about?" He held out his hand to her. "Seriously, what's the matter?"

But Moka slipped backward away from him. The wind picked up slightly and she caught his scent, a smell of thick, damp fog and wet leaves, not the faint coppery trace of blood that she remembered from her relatives.

"What's wrong?" he asked, but Moka turned around and ran for all she was worth. "Hey, wait!" Nigeki called, but Moka ran back to where she'd last seen Nigeki, the real one, and then down the direction he'd done to make his phone call home.

Something was terribly wrong and she needed to know her lone friend was all right.

* * *

The gentle trilling of Nigeki's flute filled the clearing behind the school while Kurumu smiled triumphantly and listened. She couldn't name the tune but now he didn't stop even when he tripped on a note. Her victorious grin slowly turned into a relaxed, comfortable smile. It wasn't the skill he had, which obviously wasn't much, it was the difference from most of the other boys she'd put under her spell who'd still tried to charm her with displays of their masculinity. Even that one who was so helpfully keeping Nigeki's little airhead of a friend busy while Kurumu was finishing up putting him under her power.

She looked him in his vacant eyes and pushed another wave of her power into him, getting closer to turning him into a true admirer than just a puppet who'd repeat whatever she told him. There was a strange feeling as she fed the power into his heart, though…not the usual warmth of willingness of most guys who'd do anything to impress her. Instead it was a cool feeling of emptiness, and for just a second it felt like there was nothing there at all.

Kurumu dismissed the thought; he just tried to impress girls with something other than how tough he was, of course it'd feel different manipulating his heart. Nigeki hit another sour note but that time he lowered his flute and held his hands at his sides, staring blankly ahead of him.

"What's wrong?" Kurumu asked. She walked up and looked him in the eyes to hit him with her supernatural charm again, but froze when she saw a shiny black shell forming against the skin of his neck.

"All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust," Nigeki mumbled. Fingers of some black crystal-like substance were reaching out from the shell around his neck and stretching up around his jaw and cheeks. His eyes had gone a glowing yellow and as he reached out for Kurumu the same black crystal coating his neck and face was spreading itself over his hands and fingers too.

Kurumu screamed and jumped backward, huge bat-like wings exploding from her back while a black barbed tail unspooled from beneath her skirt. She sailed into the sky but the crystallized Nigeki jumped and crashed into her, then automatically wrapped his arms around her middle with a rock-like creak.

Suddenly her fingernails extended into foot-long claws that she raked across Nigeki's back as they fell back toward earth. No blood came from his wounds, she only exposed more of the sheath of black crystal covering Nigeki's body as she sliced his jacket to tatters. But his grip around her waist opened just enough for Kurumu to pull herself free before he plowed into the ground.

A group of students screamed in surprise at the loud crash of Nigeki's impact, but in them Kurumu recognized a tall, dark-haired boy she'd already bent to her will, locked eyes with him and fired off a blast of charm at him. He reeled for a second as Kurumu screamed, "Help me! That thing's after me!"

The boy bent over and made a hideous gargling noise as his skin was replaced by green and yellow scales. Webbing formed between his lengthening fingers and toes as a huge, gauzy red fin erupted from the back of his head, extending all the way down his back and matching the fins extending out from the sides of his face. He was a merman, and as Nigeki got up he eagerly tackled the crytalized vampire.

Nigeki weaved back and forth before lunging at the merman who suddenly leaned backward, thrusting out his torso which sprouted a mass of thick spikes. Nigeki's body made a high-pitched whining sound as he struck them and slid off, leaving deep gouge marks where the spikes had touched his body's crystal shell. Before he could recover the merman dove forward, planted his hands and let his momentum pull his legs forward and slam his feet into Nigeki's chin, knocking him down.

As soon as Nigeki had hit the ground, though, his body seemed to _flow_ back up to his feet. The merman jumped high in the air and then started to spin in a drill-like motion as he came down in another kick toward Nigeki. But Nigeki held back one hand and the crystal coating it seemed to melt and ripple for a second before he swung his arm and pelted the merman with a barrage of black droplets like bullets, knocking him out of the air.

Before the merman even hit the ground Nigeki's arms seemed to lose cohesion and shift into long whip-like shapes. He lashed them against the merman's chest and knocked him back then swung his arms again and coiled them around the merman's throat, mumbling the whole time, "All is ruin, all is waste, and will fall to the ground and crumble to dust." The merman choked and thrashed, but managed to arch his back and suddenly flaps of skin under his ribs opened and spewed a cloud of noxious purple gas into Nigeki's face. The crystal vampire gave a hollow shriek in surprise and staggered away.

Every instinct told Kurumu to fly away and find somewhere to wait out the end of Nigeki's rampage, but instead her wings folded up and disappeared into her back. She watched as the pair of boys she'd bewitched battled it out not a hundred feet away, their true monstrous natures revealed by her attempts to control them. She knew she should run, but she couldn't look away.

The merman reared back his head and then flung it forward, a whip-like tongue shooting from his mouth and wrapping around Nigeki's neck. He leaned back and caught himself on his hands, forming his body into an arc and letting his momentum fling Nigeki to the ground headfirst. Without waiting for his opponent to recover the merman appeared to hold his breath for a second and the fin on his back flared to twice its length as he spewed an ultrasonic shriek at where Nigeki had landed. Dirt was blown ten feet high and Nigeki himself tumbled through the air end over end before landing in a heap.

But then he got back up, seeming not to have felt any of it.

Nigeki, or whatever he was now, dashed over and grabbed the merman by the arms, his stone-like lips pressed together so he was unfazed when the merman tried to release the gas from his chest into Nigeki's face again. Then a row of spikes emerged from Nigeki's forehead and he viciously headbutted the merman, knocking his head back violently, and then lifted and hurled him seventy feet to crash into the base of a tree hard enough to knock the entire thing over.

Then from out of the trees suddenly emerged a girl with a long trail of pink hair dancing behind her as she ran. Nigeki turned and looked at her in surprise, but that was nothing compared to the surprise when she ran straight up to him and threw her arms around his waist and pressed her cheek against his chest.

"There you are," Moka gasped. "I was afraid I was too late…"

"Hey!" the merman managed to croak. "He's a killer! Get away!"

But Moka didn't move, even as Nigeki raised one arm over her, his fist clenched like a stony sledgehammer. He didn't bring it down on top of her though, instead slowly lowering his arm to his side and standing motionless as Moka tightened her embrace.

"It's okay, Nigeki, I'm here. You don't have to deal with this by yourself," she whispered.

Nigeki's mouth dropped open and his eyes narrowed, seeming angry and confused at the same time. He balled his fists, but then cried, "HENSHIN!" The silver belt decorated by the red and black gem appeared around his waist, and with it the strange rippling red and black armor. His skull-like mask appeared behind him, split apart and then reformed around his head. Then he sank to his knees, Moka holding tight and falling to hers beside him.

A minute later a second Nigeki, not marked by black crystal, ran into sight but fell down panting for breath. His form bloated into that of a chubby raccoon a few feet tall, a tanuki. After another minute he distorted and reformed into a pudgy blond boy with thick glasses.

Kurumu walked numbly over to where the merman lay, and he groaned and sat up as she got near. "Hey Enrique…are you okay?" she asked, sounding totally drained.

"I think so…what in the hell is that guy?" he groaned.

He looked up as Moka stepped away from Nigeki and his mask split apart and vanished before his armor sprayed like blood in all directions, leaving an exhausted Nigeki clutching his throat and gasping for breath. Moka knelt by him again, then said something to him that Kurumu and the merman couldn't hear. She slipped her arms around his shoulders again and smiled faintly.

Kurumu just watched them in silence.

* * *

The next day someone knocked on Nigeki's door after class, and he cautiously opened the door and stopped when he saw Kurumu standing there, a large pink pouch clutched tightly in her hands.

"Hi," she said simply.

Instinctively he looked away from her eyes. "Hi," he replied, eying the window latch behind him.

"I'm not going to try that again," she promised quickly. "Not after yesterday."

After a second Nigeki opened the door and stepped back behind it. "Why don't you come in?" he said, although the civility was obviously an effort judging from his tight tone of voice.

"I'm really sorry," she said, but when he said nothing and didn't move, Kurumu entered and looked around for a place to sit. When Nigeki sat down a cushion by the window she took the chair at his desk. "I'm sorry," she said again. "I wouldn't have done that if I knew what would've happened."

"No, of course you weren't trying to do that," Nigeki said calmly. "But do you mind telling me what you _were_ trying to do when you hypnotized me?"

Kurumu laughed limply. "I…I'm trying…I'm supposed to be looking for a husband while I'm here," she sighed.

"So you're mind-controlling boys to try to find the best husband, then."

"Kind of," Kurumu sighed again. "It's a succubus thing…it's really important we find our perfect partner."

Nigeki nodded. "I knew a succubus when I was little. She'd hit my brain like that and make me play 'wedding' with her," he explained.

"That's cute," Kurumu said, smilingly lightly.

Nigeki couldn't help smiling a little bit at the memory himself. "She thought it would help me get over the darkness in me. It even worked for a little while."

"What happened to her?" Kurumu asked.

"She moved away. When she did she talked about being really excited about finally getting to meet her sister, or someone like that, I think" Nigeki answered her. "She promised to get in touch but I didn't hear from her again."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Kurumu said, then held out the pink bag. "Peace offering?"

Nigeki took it, opened the drawstring and peered inside, still half-expecting a trick of some kind. Instead, he saw…

"…cookies."

"I know it's not much after what happened after yesterday," Kurumu said sheepishly.

Nigeki gingerly took one out and bit into it, then nodded slowly.

"It's good."

"It is?" Kurumu asked hopefully.

"Yeah…maybe you should lead with these instead of mind control next time," he suggested.

Kurumu smiled with relief. "Maybe I will."


	3. Chapter 3: Outsider

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 3 – Outsider**

On the screen in a darkened classroom a wiry man with a mop of brown hair and gigantic lips, wearing a leather jacket over a t-shirt with an image of a mouth sticking out its tongue, dancing around and singing something impossible to understand. More than a few students were whispering to each other about how ridiculous the video was, but it was just as well since Zarock-sensei was too engrossed in the video himself to pay much attention to them.

Zarock was a man Nigeki Hitoribo found it hard to think of as an instructor. He had a gaunt, craggy face with a hawk like nose and small beady eyes that always seemed to be squinted in annoyed disbelief. His dark purple hair was formed into a sharp widow's peak, and hung long in the back as if that disguised how it was receding in front.

But even if it wasn't being taught by someone like Zarock, Nigeki had a hard time seeing the relevance of some band from halfway across the world that had gotten started back in the 60's. This was supposed to be Introduction to Human Studies, wasn't it? If Zarock enjoyed their music, fine, but weren't the students supposed to be learning about human culture to blend in once they'd left school? Did this band have a Japanese following Nigeki never heard of?

Nigeki squirmed a little in his seat. Moka had been excused from this class thanks to the couple of years she'd already spent going to school in the human world, which unsettled Nigeki after he'd transformed into a Tear once and it'd hardly been a week into the school year. She'd been able to change him back, but what if it happened again and she was across campus? What if she couldn't get to him before someone got hurt? Besides that, what if Kurumu and those two boys she'd gotten involved in her plans didn't keep quiet about what they saw? And what would Nigeki's family do if they found out what happened? They'd probably pull him out of school and make sure he never got near another living thing again…

"Hitoribo!"

Everything suddenly stopped, and it was only a second later the lights flicked on, so suddenly it seemed almost violent, that Nigeki realized it was Zarock shouting at him and not the wailing from the video anymore. Zarock was glaring down at him, and asked, "Enjoying the lesson?"

"Of course, Zarock-sensei. You're really passionate about the…erm…errrrmmm…," Nigeki said, blanking on the name of the band whose concert they'd been watching.

"I'll make it simpler for you," said Zarock, and he pointed at the screen. "Just tell me who that is, think you can manage that?"

"Errrrm!...Errr….Mi…Mik…Mike Jaguar!" Nigeki exclaimed, making Zarock clench his teeth in annoyance. The classroom erupted in laughter both at Nigeki's ridiculous answer and Zarock's obvious irritation at hearing it.

But among his laughing classmates Nigeki noticed someone who seemed totally out of place; a girl who couldn't possibly have been a day over ten and a half, her dark brown hair cut in a pageboy style. She wore a cape and tall pointed hat over her uniform, and as Nigeki looked at her, her eyes locked with his and for a second there was a mischievous twinkle, like maybe she thought she'd found a kindred spirit.

The bell to dismiss class rang after another minute of the raucous and the students automatically picked up their bags and headed for the door. "Don't forget about the club drive next week!" Zarock called out to the students as they gushed out of the room as fast as they could. "The Music Club's always looking for new members! I'm looking at you, Hitoribo! You could learn a thing or two!"

Nigeki grunted and tried to avoid looking at Zarock as he joined the flood of escaping students. He didn't need to be reminded the years of practice were still yet to pay off. But once he was in the hall and out of sight of the teacher someone tugged on the tail of his jacket. He turned around and saw the girl in the pointy hat standing there.

"That joke you pulled on Zarock was pretty good," she giggled.

"My mind was…on other things," Nigeki answered.

"Oh yeah?" she asked playfully. "Then watch this!" She jogged down the hall, stopping at the end, and from out of the depths of her cape she pulled out a white stick with a hollow pink heart at the end, but a glowing blue star that seemed to be made out of pure light inside it. She pointed it down the hall, muttered something under her breath and suddenly a huge gust of wind blasted down the hall. It ripped Nigeki's bag from his hand and blew up the skirts of every girl in sight.

A witch, huh? And one who enjoyed making a spectacle. He'd have to watch out for her.

Nigeki raised his arm to block his eyes, trying to focus on just bending down and retrieving his bag. He didn't feel like getting pummeled for having seen something he only saw because of someone else's fault. When he stood up and dared to uncover his eyes, his view was entirely taken up by a blue-haired beauty in front of him.

"There you are!" she said happily then leaned against him, her chest not so surreptitiously rubbing against him. "We're still good, right? After, you know, the other day?"

"Yes, Kurumu," Nigeki replied.

"I'm really, _really_ sorry…"

"And I told you I forgive you," Nigeki said and tried to walk away, only to bump into someone with an extremely dark look on their face.

" **You** certainly have a lot of nerve," said a less-than-amused Moka Akashiya, "to get so friendly after what you **did**."

"She didn't know-" Nigeki tried to protest.

"Yes she did," Moka corrected him. "You told her all about it after she hypnotized you."

Kurumu's own expression became dark and threatening. "Yeah, you heard about that because you followed him and hid in the bushes like some kind of stalker. Some friend **you** are."

Nigeki slipped away from the two as quickly as he could as a crowd started to form around the two girls. He quickly snuck into the one place he was sure they'd never follow him.

Safe in the men's room for the moment Nigeki sighed in relief and opened his shirt wide enough to inspect the area over his heart. To his relief the dark spot had shrunk to a tiny black speck. Even with him starting to get nervous about being caught between two angry girls before he'd managed to slip away it didn't look like his Tear state was in danger of flaring up again. Maybe he could do this after all. Hadn't he only started to change when he'd gotten beaten up, and when his brain had basically been anesthetized by Kurumu's powers?

He could do this. He was new to this whole public school thing so there'd be some bumps, but he could keep the Tear under control. His family was researching these things around the clock, sooner or later they'd have a cure.

They would, wouldn't they?

* * *

Another period and then class broke for lunch. Nigeki spotted Moka carrying a tray to a table and sat down with her, getting a smile from his fellow vampire. "You doing okay, Nigeki? No more…you know?" Moka asked gently.

"No, I'm fine. The spot's actually smaller than it was before that," Nigeki answered. "Thanks. For…you know."

"Of course," she said and smiled even wider. "Say, um…look, maybe this is kind of inappropriate, but do you think sometime maybe I could have a little drink from those blood bags you carry? It's been forever since I had the real thing."

Nigeki blanched. "I…I don't know, I'm-"

"Hey," said Kurumu as she came up from behind Nigeki and sat down next to him, then scooted her chair close enough her shoulder was rubbing against his.

"What do **you** think you're doing here?" Moka demanded.

"I have as much right to be here as you do," Kurumu retorted. "Besides, I'm trying to make things up to Nigeki for the other day."

He sighed. "Just don't tell anybody or make it happen again and I forgive you."

"Hey, if I was going to be a bitch, I could be blackmailing you about that, right?" Kurumu pointed out. "You'd probably get kicked out of school if people found out about you having that other monster inside you, right? But hey, am I telling anybody?" She stopped to sip her drink. "No, I'm not. I told Enrique and Ryunosuke not to tell either."

"Told, or commanded?" Nigeki asked.

"Told!" Kurumu said defensively.

"Anyway!" Moka interrupted, seeing they weren't going to get rid of Kurumu for the moment short of physically running her off, "Like I was asking, could I have a sip sometime, Nigeki? I haven't had the real thing in forever."

"I'm supposed to save those," he answered. "Changing puts a lot of stress on my body and I need to drink real blood to bounce back from it."

"So you guys are vampires?" Kurumu asked. "I always wondered, can you guys, like, drink each other's blood if you need to?"

Moka gasped and covered her mouth and Nigeki flinched in disgust at the idea. "No thanks," Moka nearly gagged.

"What?" asked Kurumu. "Is it that bad?"

"It's like frenching your sister," Nigeki told her.

Kurumu looked at him incredulously. "And you know what it's like to french your sister?"

"Yes, I do as a matter of fact," Nigeki answered her. "My sister wanted to know what kissing was like, so Lily did that mind-punch thing you succubi can do. I feel like she must've known it'd wear off right in the middle like that…"

"Ohhhhhh…kay," Kurumu said. "So how many sisters do you have?"

"Two," Nigeki replied, then added under his breath, "I hope."

"What do you mean, you hope?" Kurumu asked.

"Nothing!" Nigeki said, waving it off. "What about you two? Any siblings?"

"No," Kurumu answered, looking a little crestfallen.

"Three," Moka answered, but when Nigeki and Kurumu gave her lightly questioning looks she added, "We…don't really get along, though."

Nigeki turned slightly as he saw the young witch from earlier slide into a table by herself and drawing a number of wary looks from students sitting nearby. Except for a brown-haired boy with glasses who was trying to look unobtrusive as he crouched behind the students at a table a little ways behind the witch while he aimed a camera at her.

Suddenly the witch locked eyes with Nigeki, raised her wand high before a bronze wash tub fell from the ceiling and landed on the boy with the camera. A few students at the tables around her got up and moved away after what she'd just done. She didn't look bothered at all. In fact she shot Nigeki an impish grin.

He had a feeling he'd be seeing more of her.

* * *

He was right. In Introduction to Human Studies the next day Zarock-sensei was just launching into another lecture on the 60's Western music scene when an air conditioning vent fell off its hinges and an avalanche of bullfrogs poured down on top of him. The frogs left slimy footprints wherever they landed and within seconds they were hopping all over room and students were slipping and running into each other as a green tide spread across the room. Nigeki himself gasped in surprise as two cold green amphibians slipped down the back of his shirt and yanked his shirt out of his pants to dump the frogs on the floor.

And in the center of all the chaos laughing so hard tears streaked down her cheeks. Frogs that hopped at her bounced off some kind of invisible screen surrounding her body. Soon someone got the door open and the students spilled into the hallway.

"Who did this?!" roared Zarock as he followed his students out of the classroom, slipping on frog slime and windmilling his long bony arms to keep his balance every step of the way. "WHO DID THIS?!" Zarock screamed before slipping again, losing his balance completely and falling on his butt.

Teachers and misbehaving students opened the doors of their classrooms and peered into the hall as the frog invasion spread. They saw Zarock covered in slime, screaming like a maniac and unable to get to his feet, and the students watching the spectacle were soon filling the hall with laughter. Nigeki decided class was probably out and snuck away before things could get any crazier.

By the time he'd made it out to the courtyard, though, he'd somehow picked up a passenger. The young witch was next to him, her laughing at what she'd done only slowing down because she was short on breath. "Um, hello?" he asked, not sure what else to say.

"Wasn't that the funniest thing you ever saw?" she wheezed, looking at him with a smiling that was almost blinding.

"Dumping a ton of frogs in class?"

"Yeah! He's supposed to be teaching us, right? Why is he wasting our time with music our parents listened to? It's sooooo stupid!"

"So you dropped frogs on him and ruined his class."

"Pffft! That class was pointless anyway, I just said that!" she said. "You think it's stupid too! That's why you gave him that answer yesterday!"

"Hey!" Nigeki said defensively. "I looked it up later. I wasn't that far off."

Her expression suddenly hardened. "You mean that wasn't a joke you did?"

"I'm not really that funny," Nigeki shrugged, but then his face became a mask of confusion. "You thought I had it in for Zarock because I gave him a goofy answer? I mean, yeah, I agree he could be focusing on something more relevant. But…I don't know. I wasn't _trying_ to make fun of him."

"So you're saying you're really just that stupid?"

"What?"

"Are you just that dumb?" the witch demanded, an ugly sneer on her face now. " 'Mike Jaguar'? Even I know that's wrong!"

"Now wait-" Nigeki tried to protest but the witch waved her wand and a wash tub drove Nigeki's head into the ground hard enough to crack the sidewalk slab he was standing on. He pulled himself up after just a second but she was already gone.

* * *

Nigeki didn't show up for lunch that day, which unsettled Moka with what she'd heard about a biblical plague of frogs in his class from earlier in the day. She went looking for him, and finally found her fellow vampire out by the large trash bins behind the school, heaving a wash tub that been pulled almost in half into one of them and muttering angrily to himself. Probably about whatever had been the cause of the grapefruit-sized bump on his head.

"Are you okay? What happened?" she asked, and Nigeki gasped in surprise and whipped around, grabbing her wrists suddenly. He froze a second later when he saw her face, with Moka blushing pink and looking breathless.

"Sorry!" he said and let go of her wrists and jumped back a foot. "I had a run-in with a witch. Feeling kind of jumpy."

"You mean the thing with the frogs this morning?" Moka asked, almost innocently.

He sighed. "Yeah. The thing with the frogs. There's this witch in my class…she thought I was making fun of the teacher when I really just gave a dumb answer. When she found out it really was just a dumb answer she dropped that on my head and ran away. Do you know any witches at this school, Moka? Like, advanced placement witches?"

Moka tilted her head a little at the strange way he put it. "Advanced placement witches?"

Nigeki sighed. "I mean like young witches. She barely looks ten."

"Oh! Oh…well, hmmm, yeah, I have heard about one girl like that," Moka answered. "There is this one girl who's supposed to be in our year because she skipped a few grades, Yukari Sendou. I think I heard something about her being a witch. I haven't met her, though."

"I see."

She put a hand on his shoulder. "Look, Nigeki, are you okay? If you're nervous about somebody sneaking up on you, we should be careful."

"I'm not going to change into a monster again, Moka, I'm just kind of annoyed," Nigeki replied, then stopped as he realized what he'd said. "I mean, a worse monster. An evil monster…you know what I mean. Shit, you were there…"

Moka laughed lightly. "I know what you mean. We should get back or we'll be late."

"Yeah," Nigeki smiled at her. "Let's go." As they walked he placed a hand over his heart, just to check for that familiar cool, hard feeling of a Tear shell. Even after his encounter with Yukari, it was still gone. Maybe this would work out after all.

"Nigeki," Moka said suddenly. "What do you think about witches?"

"Hmmm? Well, that was the first one I met. But, yeah, I know about a lot of monsters not considering them much different from humans. I'm not sure if that's big a difference myself."

"But…do you think they don't belong here?" Moka pressed.

"Well…shit. I think non-humans have a lot of human enemies, witches too. But I'm a vampire, Moka. I'm supposed to be one of the worst kinds of monsters there is, and I'm trying to avoid being like that so an even worse monster inside me doesn't get out. I don't know, isn't that the kind of thing really makes a monster or not? Instead of claws and breaking rocks with your bare hands."

Moka smiled at him. Proudly, he thought. "I do. Thank you."

"It's what we're all here to learn, isn't it?"

* * *

The next day Nigeki was cautious about going Introduction to Human Studies. He'd seen Zarock-sensei on the way to class, looking even angrier than usual after what had happened the day before, and made sure to stay out of the teacher's sight. He was surprised to see Zarock carrying a guitar case in one hand, though. Was he planning to let them see his own musical talents today…?

He was almost to class before he heard someone yell, "Unforgivable!" He thought about turning around and going to class the long way when a bright green cloud exploded out of the hallway ahead, and he froze as he realized it was a giant swarm of grasshoppers. They spread down the hall like a wave, knocking Nigeki and any other student slow enough to be in their way to the floor, buzzing around them angrily. Nigeki swatted at them with his hands even knowing it was useless, until after a minute the insect cloud buzzed out of sight and he sat up, uniform chewed and tattered.

Sighing as he was already sure what was going on, Nigeki walked toward the source of the shouting and sighed as his fears were confirmed.

The young witch was leaning back against a wall, surrounded by two burly boys. One of them, a craggy-faced black-haired specimen who looked to be in charge, had a green band around one arm signifying the position of class president. There was also a hole in the ceiling the size and shape of the metal wash tub resting on top of the head of another boy who lay flat on the floor.

"What makes you think you can get away with these stupid jokes and assaulting other students?!" the president demanded. "You're here to learn how to exist peacefully and avoid attracting attention! Or did you somehow miss that when you jumped all those grades?!"

Yukari stuck her tongue out and pulled down her bottom eyelids with her fingers. "It's high school!" she fired right back. "Everybody plays pranks! Is everyone at this school some kind of loser or what?!"

"Why you miserable little-" he growled and lunged at her, but another girl jumped in the way, arms splayed defensively.

"Wait just a minute!" yelled Moka. "What happened to existing peacefully?!"

"Exactly! What happened to it? Some uppity little _witch_ thought she was above it by flooding a classroom with frogs! What's she even doing here at a _monster_ school?" He moved to slap Moka aside and she raised her arms to block his swing when someone grabbed him from behind before he could attack.

"Boy I'm glad to have somebody like you representing us," Nigeki asked, then threw him against the other wall. The boy's friend tackled Nigeki to the floor and swung a fist at face, but Nigeki grabbed his wrist. Then he punched Nigeki in the face with his other fist. For just a second Nigeki's eyes flashed yellow but he clenched his teeth and fought it down.

Moka screamed and tried to run forward and help but the class president shouldered her aside, grinning sadistically. On the floor Nigeki grabbed his opponent's head and slammed it down against his own in an awkward headbutt, dazing the boy long enough for Nigeki to get out from under him. The two glared at each other, fists clenched. Students were starting to gather around to watch as it looked like a fistfight was about to break out.

"WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?!" screamed a shrill voice, and an enraged Zarock charged up. Everything stopped. "What's this? Fighting in the halls, are you, Hitoribo?"

The boy he'd been grappling with pointed at Yukari. "She started it, sir! Assaulted a upperclassmen!" he said, indicating the class president with his other hand.

"He tried to bite me!" Yukari retorted.

"After you mouthed off about being so much smarter than everyone else at this school."

"Get to class! You too, Wanibuchi!" Zarock barked at the class president, then set an angry glare on Yukari and Nigeki. "You too! And I'll see you both after class!"

As the disappointed crowd dispersed, Yukari cast a long, unsure look over her shoulder at the pair of vampires who'd come to her rescue.

* * *

The rest of the day dragged on as Nigeki wondered what Zarock would have in mind for punishment detail. Yukari kept looking over at him during class, but with that same unsure expression rather than the annoyance he was expecting.

They met Zarock in the hall where the fight had been that morning, and it was still a scene of devastation with cracked windows, torn wallpaper and splatters of dried bug guts on every surface. Zarock had mops and buckets for them, but Nigeki noticed he also had that guitar case from this morning.

"Clean this mess up," Zarock grunted. "I'll be back in a while to see how you're doing. And don't even think about leaving until this place is _spotless_." Then he left, taking the guitar case with him.

Yukari and Nigeki exchanged another glance, then picked up their mops. Nigeki went outside to fill the buckets, and he'd barely even come back inside before soap dumped itself into one bucket and Yukari's mop floated through the air, soaked its tip in the soapy bucket and started to scrub up the hallway by itself. Not to Nigeki's surprise, Yukari was standing nearby grinning as she directed the mop up and down the hall at blinding speed with her wand.

"I don't think that's what he meant," Nigeki said a little apprehensively.

"Why not?" she asked. "I didn't do anything. So I'm using magic."

Nigeki set down his own mop, soaked the end and started scrubbing at squashed grasshopper on the other side. "Oh yeah?" he asked.

"I don't have to tell you anything," Yukari said.

"I got punched in the face for you," Nigeki reminded her. "That must be worth something."

"It doesn't still hurt does it?"

"A little," Nigeki said, then stopped as he realized it hadn't been Yukari who'd asked. He looked up to see Moka standing there, and she gingerly touched at the bruise forming around one of his eyes. "What are you doing here, Moka?"

"Making sure you're okay. And I thought maybe I'd help if you needed it," she said and gave Nigeki such a sweet smile he could almost feel cavities forming in his mouth from looking at her.

"I appreciate it, but I think Zarock-sensei brought a machine gun or something in case he catches us slacking off."

"A machine gun?!" Moka gasped.

"No! Not really! But we still shouldn't be slacking off and getting our friends to help probably still counts…"

Moka heaved a sigh of relief. "I was afraid you were serious for a second," she said, then looked Nigeki in the face, and both chortled. After a second they noticed Yukari staring.

"What is with you two?"

Nigeki sighed and started pushing his mop up the floor. "Yukari…that is your name, right? Can I ask why you and those guys from this morning were getting into it in the halls? What started all that?"

Yukari lowered her arms and looked away. The mop she'd been controlling fell on the floor with a clatter. It wasn't until a minute later that she answered. "They asked me why I was showing off I'm a witch when we're supposed to hide what we are." She waved her wand up to her hat and back down.

"Uh-huh?" Nigeki prompted.

"And I don't want to hide what I am. You know how many grades I got to skip? This is who I am! I'm proud of it!" Yukari exclaimed. "There were people acting like that on the first day!"

"I bet you showed off your magic with whoever gave you shit then, right?" Nigeki asked. "What happened after that? Did it happen again? Did you just start to like using your magic to show what you could do?"

"So what?! Everyone acts like I'm a freak even here because I'm not a real monster! I can do things humans can't, I know things humans don't! What's the difference?!"

"Can I ask one thing?" asked Nigeki, who then asked another thing. "What about the thing with the wind? I didn't give you shit about being a witch."

"That was when I thought you were cool," Yukari answered.  
"He's cool!" Moka immediately leaped to her friend's defense, and Nigeki flinched back, a huge sweatdrop forming on the back of his head. "Sorry…too much?" she asked Nigeki.

Yukari stared at them for a long time before speaking again. "Why do you two even care?" she finally asked them. "You're not witches too, are you?"

"No, we're not," Moka replied with a smile. "At least, I don't think he is." Nigeki grunted and sweatdropped again. "But we do know what it's like to be alone in a weird place. I was in a _human_ school for years before I came here. And this is the first time Nigeki's even been to a school with other kids his age."

Yukari knitted her brow. "Really? Why?"

Nigeki nodded and said, "Honestly, I was more alone at home than I am here. My mom hates me and my oldest brother hates me even more because of it. My dad thought it'd be best if I go somewhere else for a while that has kids my own age and make some friends, so he can focus on a really big project without us all fighting and distracting him from his work."

Yukari raised her wand and the mop started scrubbing the hall by itself again. No one said a word.

"Hard at work, huh?" said a derisive voice, and at the end of the hall stood Zarock, guitar case in hand.

"Zarock-sensei," Nigeki said, rolling around something appropriate to explain what was going on to a teacher who was already fed up with them.

"Not only do you wreck this place and not clean it up like you're told, you cheat with bloody _magic!_ ," Zarock pointed at them accusingly.

"It's what I _am_!" Yukari protested. "I'm not any worse because my powers come from something I learned instead of something I'm born with!"

" **I DON'T CARE!** " Zarock yelled. "Here I am, greatest of my kind among anything I've ever attempted, and reduced to 'paying off my debt to supernatural society' putting up with a bunch of obnoxious brats with no work ethic at all! I fought and clawed to get to the top, sacrificed everyone to join this world, gain power!

"And what do I have to show for it?!" he ranted on, sounding as if anger he'd been bottling up for years was finally boiling over. "I've got _THIS! YOU!_ A bunch of punkass monster kids who think _they're_ special, who think _they_ have it all figured out! _I've_ played in the big leagues, you worthless kids! _You_ wouldn't last two minutes!"

"Run," Nigeki whispered to the others, who were already inching away from their crazed teacher, but then he opened the guitar case.

Reverently he pulled out a flying v guitar with the design of the English flag on the body and a cackling purple-haired zombie head atop the neck. "They called me a Lord once, maybe now they'll call me that again! Lord Raptor!" He strummed the guitar once, and the entire bottom floor of the school building screamed in terror. Windows exploded, classroom doors were blown off their hinges, and Nigeki, Moka and Yukari were sent tumbling through the air landing in a sprawl against the far wall.

When the sound died down again Zarock was no longer in sight. Instead of a gaunt-looking human man there was only an emaciated blue zombie strumming his guitar in the hall. He had several stalks of purple hair coming out the top of his face, which was little more than a skull covered by skin. Long yellow _fangs_ emerged from his chest just below his pectoral muscles, like the skeletal yellow fingers on each hand. Engorged vertebrae like the ends of steel girders stuck out in a row down his back. His only clothes consisted of leather gloves with silvery metal studs over the knuckles matching the studded leather codpiece on the front of ragged blue pants, with a Union Jack emblem and a spiked metal shin guard on one leg.

" **Get ready to dance til you drop!** " Lord Raptor screamed, a foot-long tongue wagging out of his mouth while he violently strummed his guitar, somehow the booming of a dozen amps echoing his notes. Then he ran at them, his bony legs taking disturbingly long, gangly steps that crunched the tile each time his feet hit the ground. Yukari screamed in fright and waved her wand, sending a wash tub flying down the hall at Raptor who spin-kicked it through a window without breaking his stride.

The trio of students ran down the hall and around a corner as Lord Raptor raked his bony fingertips across his guitar strings and a blast of sound ripped down the hall and blew a hole in the wall.

"I don't think we can get away from him," Moka panted, and then grabbed Nigeki's wrist.

"Wait, what are you doing?" he gasped.

"If you don't have to fight, you don't have to worry about changing again! Let me do it!"

"No…!" Nigeki protested, but it was too late. His palm touched the Rosario on her neck, a feeling of cold raced through their bodies and for a second his belt with the Bloodstone mounted in the center could be seen as the objects' contrary powers intermingled, then there was an explosion that flung them away from each other.

The Moka who stood up wasn't the one who'd been so eager to take Nigeki's hand a second before. The sky seemed darker and the wind colder as she took off at a run in Raptor's direction. "Oowww!" he wailed as he saw her coming. "Hey baby, new hair dye? I'm diggin' it!"

"You disgusting, lowly zombie, time for you to learn your-"

"La Malta, come out and plaaaaaayayay!" Raptor called and suddenly something sprang up from the ground right underneath Moka. A frog-like creature with spindly limbs, giant lips and a single eye lunged up and swallowed Moka whole, then dove back into the ground and vanished from sight.

"Moka!" Nigeki yelled, then clenched his fists. Raptor rapidly strummed his guitar and the neck transformed into a giant chainsaw, and he rushed at Nigeki and Yukari waving the saw in front of him. The young witch waved her wand and a flurry of cards shot at Raptor, but he only whooped and slashed through them with his saw, not even seeming to notice the few that lodged in his skin. Nigeki shoved Yukari out of the crazed zombie's path and jumped the other way but the chainsaw still raked across his back.

Nigeki flinched and his eyes flashed yellow. Icy fear clenched his stomach at this maniac with a giant chainsaw, and he knew there was no other choice. He had no combat training, no weapons or powers he knew how to use against a powerful and maniacal enemy like Lord Raptor. Except one. Better that than take another, more serious wound, give the Tear the chance to awaken…

" **Henshin!** " His belt appeared and the Bloodstone shone with a forbidding crimson light as its essence crawled over Nigeki's body. His skull-mask split apart and reformed around his head as the darker part of his vampire nature grew stronger, and it felt like Nigeki was drifting away to a corner of his mind and something else assuming control of his body. He was filled with the urge to fight. To crush those foolish enough to challenge his dominance.

He wasn't the unassuming Nigeki Hitoribo anymore. Now, he was only Bloodstone.

Raptor's chainsaw buzzed angrily as it skimmed the top edge of Bloodstone's mask, and he whipped around and grabbed the saw's front bar before Raptor could bury it in his chest. Suddenly Bloodstone shoved the weapon aside, jumped high and slammed his heel into Raptor's face. The zombie grunted loud in surprise but landed in a somersault, rolled until his feet were on the ground again and unfolded himself into a standing position.

"Ooooh! Look at 'im, finks 'e's a big, scary _Kamen Rider_ wiv 'is nice fancy suit and 'is big shiny belt!" Raptor jeered, hopping back and forth and picking at his guitar strings. "Oh no, please don't 'urt me, Mister Rider!"

Bloodstone said nothing, just watching his erratic enemy for an opening or a sign of an incoming attack. Let this fool be the one to fill the air with pointless talking, and think he could distract a being meant only for conquest.

" **Blood Riser** ," said Bloodstone's belt and he slammed one fist against the ground. Red power whipped through the dirt and exploded in a giant red fountain under Raptor, but he curled himself into a ball and stuck out his long legs behind him and pushed himself off the side of the school building with all his undead strength. As he came shooting at Bloodstone a bony spike four feet long extended from his elbow and gouged into Bloodstone's chest.

With quivering hands Bloodstone reached out and grabbed Raptor by the neck. Paying no attention to the gaping wound in his chest, Bloodstone smashed Raptor face-first into the ground, but the zombie again recovered quickly and somersaulted away from him.

Bloodstone charged after him when Raptor came charging right back, spinning like a tornado and crackling with giant bolts of electricity. Raptor crashed into Bloodstone laughing like a lunatic the whole time.

"Feel it baby! **FEEL IT**!" he taunted as his electricity lanced through Bloodstone's body and battered by Raptor's flailing arms and the spikes on his belt.

Then there was a *CLANG* that echoed throughout the clearing as a heavy metal wash tub bounced off Raptor's head. Dazed, he stopped spinning against Bloodstone and fell. That wall the opening he needed.

Bloodstone crouched, jumped high enough he cleared the tree canopy and came down with his booted foot aimed at Raptor's back. He landed with a horrific crunch that made Yukari flinch away from the battle. Raptor yelled in pain, and even as he did Bloodstone picked him up and hurled him through the treetops. When he crashed into a tree trunk some eight hundred feet away, almost breaking it in half, Raptor was able to shakily climb to his feet.

But as soon as he had he could hear deep, angry breathing coming closer and the bright yellow eyes of his opponent shining through the trees. There was a flash of light, a metallic keening sound and a tree trunk toppled over, almost landing on top of Raptor. Desperately the zombie readied his guitar and strummed it with all the force he could pack into one attack, but Bloodstone braced himself, crossing his arms in front of his face as the sonic wave washed over him, pushing him back one inch, then two…then Raptor's attack was spent. Bloodstone uncrossed his arms and came leaping at the zombie, the gleaming blade on one elbow fully extended to slice him straight to the grave. Again.

Raptor screamed in terror, his long tongue wagging, and turned and sprinted away through the trees with his gangly stride, and Bloodstone's attack only sliced through empty air.

Sucking in a deep breath, Bloodstone's armor flew off him in a crimson spray. His mask split apart and disappeared along with his belt. Restored to whatever passed for normal, Nigeki sank to his knees and panted heavily. Thanks to his magnified urges he'd come so close to annihilating his opponent…did he have that right, even with someone as unhinged as Lord Raptor?

He turned and started back to school, but he'd hardly gone fifteen steps when he saw Yukari standing in his path.

"That was so cool," she whispered.

Nigeki sighed. "If you say so…but what happened to Moka?"

He heard a whistling sound and jumped toward Yukari, moving himself between Yukari and whatever was incoming, but it landed a few feet away with a splat and didn't move. In the near-darkness it took him a few seconds to recognize the strange creature that had swallowed Moka and disappeared, a large black X replacing the iris in its single eye. A second later Moka, uniform torn and covered in splotches of transparent goo, strode through the trees and looked down at the fallen creature with understandable disgust.

"Last time these undead freaks get ideas above their station," Moka assured them.

"I hope it's a long time before anybody tries to pick a fight with us again, period," Nigeki sighed and leaned against a tree.

* * *

Raptor was still barreling through the woods, his long heaving, but he stopped dead in his taloned tracks when he saw someone ahead of him. It wasn't Bloodstone, it was a man in white robes and hood, and Raptor had a feeling he was in even more trouble.

"I'm very disappointed," the hooded figure said in a hollow voice. "You said you looking for a fresh start, turning your back on your past…yet you hid _this_ from me, Zarock."

The robed figure easily plucked the guitar from Raptor's hands, and snapped the neck in two while reaching out for Raptor's face with his other hand, mesmerizing light flowing from his palm.

"Keeping deadly weapons like this is hardly the act of a repentant man, now is it? Perhaps it's time for us to have another talk," he said, then grabbed Raptor's skeletal face, and everything went white.

* * *

Nigeki almost didn't go to Introduction to Human Studies the next day, expecting hell from Zarock. But to his surprise the teacher was a stooped old man with a thick white mustache who squinted at everything even though he wore glasses so thick they looked like they were one second away from dropping off the end of his nose.

Instead of 60's rock bands he gave them a lecture on ways to identify monster hunters and tell the dangerous ones apart from the amateurs. Not really the kind of thing the class was supposed to be about, but applicable enough until a new, less homicidal teacher was found, Nigeki guessed.

He'd heard a lot of it from his tutors as a kid, though, being one of the most despised species of monster, and slowly tuned out as the lecture went on. As he did he noticed Yukari didn't seem to be paying much attention either, and was smiling faintly in his direction with a distant look in her eyes.

After class ended Nigeki wandered out with the rest of the students, wondering faintly what had happened to Zarock. He was almost bowled over when a pink-haired girl ran up to him at top speed, looked up to apologize and then stopped as she recognized him.

"Moka! What are you in such a hurry for?" he asked. "Is Zarock back?"

"No," she panted. "Just wanted to make sure you were still okay after yesterday, even after you had to change again."

"Changing makes it so the bad part of me doesn't come out, remember?"

"It's not part of you, I don't believe that. It's something in you that doesn't belong."

"If getting rid of it was as simple as that we'd have found a way already," Nigeki replied, but Moka's smile didn't dim. He wondered if anything could make it.

"Smile, smile," she said, pulling his mouth out into an awkward smile. "That's what you need to do to stay better!"

A soft giggle interrupted them, and they looked over to see Yukari looking at the two of them, blushing and cupping her cheeks with her hands. "I don't believe it," she mumbled.

"What?" asked Nigeki.

"Are you two a couple or something?" she asked.

Moka frowned and grabbed Nigeki's arm with both of hers. "Yes," she answered for him.

"We are?"

"Great!" Yukari squealed and flung her arms around Nigeki's waist.

"Great?" he asked, then his jaw hit the floor. "Wait, what do you mean ' **great** '?"


	4. Chapter 4: Splashed

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 4 – Splashed**

As a new day dawned on Youkai Academy students were already setting up canopies, tables and signs outside the main building. It was the day of the school's club drive where they would be trying to attract first-year students into joining their fields of interest.

In the Headmaster's private office, a different recruitment was already taking place.

"Thank you for coming so quickly," he said in a hollow voice as he shut the curtains to make sure no-one got any idea of what going on. "I understand I'm asking you to give up on quite a bit to be here."

"I've got friends I'm lying to 'be here'," the woman who was his guest replied. "People I made a commitment to."

"I have no intention of demeaning your bandmates, but much greater things are in store, Felicia," the Headmaster replied.

"ANM48's the most popular band in the world right now, thank you very much," she informed him.

He nodded. "And a daring experiment in monster camouflage, I'm more than willing to admit," the Headmaster said in recognition of her status. "But I repeat my claim that alarming things are taking form, and we need to be ready."

"Whoa, whoa…like, Pyron big?"

Again he nodded in reply. "Yes, and the sooner preparations can be made the better. Hence my request to you. One of my new students brought a powerful secret to this school no-one thought to bring to my attention before he entered this school, but it could make him an extremely valuable agent all the same.

"There is a darkness inside him," the Headmaster went on, "however, and while from the sound of things he's coping with it better here than he did among his family, I need to be sure. I need someone reliable-"

She held up one furryy paw. "There _is_ Jon."

"Ahem! As I was saying, I need someone reliable, _and_ someone a teenage boy won't mind being around on a regular basis keeping an eye on him."

"So you _do_ only want me around for my good looks."

He smiled faintly. "I need someone who he'd allow to guide him, someone he'd be willing to trust. But most importantly, someone _I'm_ willing to trust."

Silence filled the room. After a few minutes of thought, Felicia said, "You got any pictures of this baby you need me sitting?"

* * *

As soon as Nigeki answered his door he found a three-foot-tall package wrapped with pink bow pushed into his arms. "Surprise!" said the girl presenting it to him and darting into his room before she could be stopped.

"Ggghkk…Hi, Kurumu. What's this?"

"Open it and find out, silly!" she grinned.

Eying the giant package a little uncertainly, Nigeki brought it over to his desk, took off the ribbon and the paper it was wrapped in and the white cardboard box inside off the bottom.

"It's a…cake," Nigeki stated, and indeed it was. It was three layers high, covered in carefully-applied marble frosting. A ring of strawberries surrounded the circumference of the top layer, and written in chocolate icing inside them were the words "Congratulations on Finding the Perfect Club!"

"Wow," he said, and Kurumu stifled a pleased giggle. "It's awesome, but isn't it—"

"I know, it's still a little early, but I wanted to show you right away. And I thought maybe we could go looking together…it'd be more fun with a friend, right?" Kurumu said, looking at him with a hopeful smile.

Nigeki turned away and pretended to be studying the cake. It was thanks to Kurumu trying to bend him to her will that he'd had a Tear attack, one of the worst he'd ever had, but then again she hadn't known that would happen. His family was still trying to gather enough proof to convince the rest of the monster world such a thing existed. Plus she had released the boys she'd already enchanted, hadn't she?

And he was supposed to be making friend and having a good time to keep his Tear aspect from surfacing again. That was why he'd been sent to school, because while his family could keep an eye on him at home, actual companionship was something it was increasingly harder for him to get there. Nigeki had to be careful, of course, but he wasn't going to be building a circle of friends if he avoided everyone. Besides, it was high school; weren't they supposed to make some stupid mistakes when they first started testing their independence?

"Sure," he said with a smile. "Let's go."

"Great!" Kurumu said and grabbed him by the arm and dragged him out of the room almost at a run. He barely had time to shut the door behind him before they left the floor entirely.

A few minutes later Moka came by and knocked timidly on Nigeki's door.

* * *

"What about that?!" Kurumu pointed as they walked past the colorful displays set up at the Flower Arrangement Club's both.

"I don't really think that's the perfect club for me…," Nigeki said hesitantly.

"I was just kidding. You need to learn to tell when somebody's making a joke."

They passed another both that had "Kendo Club" written on a crude wooden sign hammered into the grass. A pair of boys were taking turns whacking each other with bokken while a stocky man observed their sparring with an unmoving frown on his face.

"You call that an overhead strike?!" he barked even as his pupil's imitation weapon made a solid *thwack* against the other's shoulder. "And you! Tighten up that defense! We're supposed to be impressing the first-years!"

"Y-yes Bishamon-sama!" the boy stammered, his and his partner's practice swords clacking together under their instructor's watchful eye.

Next they passed a booth with a banner overhead reading "ANIMATION APPRECATION CLUB" with a picture of a purple-haired catgirl making the peace sign and a pair of hearts floating off of her face. The same one from the magical girl show playing on the screen at the moment inside, looked like. The chubby science teacher and her dancing robot doll were standing inside helping to draw in perspective members, and a sizable crowd was forming around the booth. As they went by, though, Nigeki swore the teacher fixed him with a probing gaze for a second that didn't make him think she wanted him for the club.

"Say," Nigeki pointed with his free hand, "Isn't that your, uh…friend from before?" Standing under a banner reading "Drama Club" was a pudgy blond boy in red tunic and tights. He looked just like the human form Kurumu's tanuki friend had assumed after the dust had settled that day Nigeki had changed into a Tear. But standing next to him was a tall, willowy girl in a yellow dress, her golden-blonde hair done up into buns behind her ears.

He fell to one knee as they acted out a scene, and she placed a hand over her chest and turned away in feigned embarrassment. He rose to his feet, and she rushed into his arms and planted a hard, very real kiss on his lips, holding it for a minute until they stepped back, panting, smiling and red in the cheeks

"Yeah, that's him," Kurumu confirmed, brow knitted in disbelief. "He bounced back fast…"

"No kidding. She's almost as pretty as you," Nigeki said without thinking.

"What did you say?" Kurumu demanded. "She's almost as pretty as me?"

"…yeah?"

She smiled and clenched his arm, chest rubbing against it. Nigeki's cheeks flared red and he tried to gently pull away but Kurumu only clung to him harder. "That's what I thought," she said, and practically dragged Nigeki behind her as she went down the avenue. He failed to see Moka coming up behind them, but Kurumu hadn't…

They sped past the Spirit Photography Club, War Game Club, Trampoline Club, Archeology Club, Stand-Up Comedy Club…finally Kurumu stopped and Nigeki managed to pull himself free of her grip and try to pick out the real world from the blur of colors and sounds they'd just been passing through. "What about that one?" Kurumu asked excitedly, and Nigeki saw she was pointing at the school pool.

A bright yellow banner reading "Swimming Club" hung off the chainlink fence around the pool, and underneath were a group of shapely girls in bikinis waving and smiling at passersby. By this point Nigeki had to stand on his tiptoes to know any of it, as the Swimming Club had attracted a bigger crowd than any other club whose booth he could see.

Some of the girls in the club were leading a larger procession of drooling first-year students already in their swim trunks up to the pool. Near the back of the line Nigeki saw someone he dimly recognized as the young merman who'd made a valiant effort to fight him off when he'd changed into a Tear.

"Eeeehhh…I'm going to have to pass," Nigeki said.

Kurumu tilted her head. "Seriously? You can't swim, or something?"

"Well, not can't, I _can't_. You've heard about vampires and how they can't cross running water, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well, that's true, but only if we touch it. Then it really messes us up. I am not going near that pool," Nigeki explained.

Kurumu stared at him with slightly amused disbelief. "Seriously? Is that really a thing?"

"Yes it is. I've got a PE swimming exemption in my room if you want to see it."

She nodded but her amusement had turned into disappointment, then a sly smirk appeared on her face. "You asking me back to your room, then?"

A huge sweatdrop formed on Nigeki's head. "You enjoy doing that, don't you?" he asked. Kurumu winked, stuck out her tongue and made the "peace" sign with her fingers in reply. She stopped and peered over his shoulder, then grabbed Nigeki by the arm again.

"Well, let's go look over here, then!" she said.

"Oh, Moka-chan! Thinking about joining the Cooking Club?" asked a voice a second after Kurumu dragged Nigeki past a club's booth. It was motherly woman with luxurious white hair and wearing a frilly pink apron over a purple dress. A pair of girls in aprons as well walked up from the direction of the school building, carrying an oven-fresh cake in their hands that they set out on the counter in front of their club booth.

"Moka?" Nigeki said pulled away from Kurumu to look behind him. Indeed there was Moka, who stopped to catch her breath.

"Not right now Mrs. Dreemurr, I'm trying to catch up to that friend I was worried about before," she answered. Kurumu was glaring at the vampiress so hard it seemed a wonder Moka didn't explode into flames. Maybe it was because Moka was glaring back at Kurumu just as hard, and Nigeki stepped out from between them out of self-preservation instinct.

"What do you think you're doing here?" Kurumu asked coldly.

"I _think_ I'm trying to find my best friend so we can go looking at clubs together," Moka replied, icicles almost forming in the air as she spoke. "But _some_ one seems to think only she gets to do that."

"Girls-" Nigeki tried to intervene.

"QUIET!" they both yelled. He backed off even farther. Mrs. Dreemurr nodded at him for making a wise decision. He'd been warned about every method every monster hunter humanity had come up with to exterminate him and his kind, but ticked off girls were their own special kind of scary.

"There you are!" he heard a girl call out, and Yukari came up to Nigeki with a smile on her face. It quickly faded when she saw the sparks flying between Kurumu and Moka. "What's going on?"

"I really wish I knew," Nigeki said. Kurumu had grabbed Moka's hair and tripped her to the ground without much resistance as this Moka was no fighter. It started to feel like an icy knot was forming in Nigeki's stomach; a one-sided catfight was breaking out between two people he was starting to consider friends, and here he was supposed to be keeping a low profile and staying out of trouble.

Yukari raised her wand high before swinging it down and pointing it straight at Kurumu, who was knocked flat by a wash tub landing on her head. Nigeki sighed and rubbed his forehead. Was this really how it was going to be? Him sent to break out of his shell and do things with people his own age, but never get involved when things got uncomfortable?

He'd get the chance to find out. At that moment a boy's scream of alarm cut the air.

* * *

Enrique burst out of his human disguise, scales forming and fins flaring down his back. The girl behind him dove underwater and he followed after, pursuing her across the pool with an agility rivalling her own. Suddenly she turned and swam past his back, slapping him in the face with her fishtail as she went by, grinning, if indeed that was the word, with that huge, shark-like mouth.

Great, mermaids. If it wasn't bad enough he always needed to explain the difference between the difference between his species and theirs, even among other monsters, mermaids always looked down on his kind. After all, they always said, whose species was only just now crawling back from the edge of extinction?

It had been the smell that had given her away, the soft tinge of salt water neither of their kinds could hide from someone else from the bottom of the sea. Of course, when he spotted her over his shoulder with a mouth wide enough to swallow a manhole cover, that had been a pretty good indicator of trouble too…

She swam at him again like a torpedo, but Enrique sucked in deeply, filled his body up with energy, and then expelled in a deafening ultrasonic blast that hit the attacking mermaid and blew her end over end until she broke the surface of the pool.

He shot out of the pool like a missile, somersaulted six times in the air before he came down in the shallow end and went into a fighting stance. In the middle of the pool a few boys had already keeled over, drained of their vital essence by a circle of mermaids.

Not the enticing creatures of popular culture, but half-fish with wicked talon-like fingernails and impossibly wide mouths with two rows of hook-shaped teeth. They were eying the merman hungrily now that the other first-years they'd enticed were scrambling to get away from the pool now that one of the mermaids had let herself be discovered by someone fast enough to react before he became a meal.

"I won't let this go on!" Enrique called out confidently. "Surrender and spare yourselves a beating!"

"Not afraid to hit a lady, are you?" asked one of the mermaids who seemed to be in charge, one with pale blue hair and a purple bikini. "Or are you just not afraid even when you're outnumbered? Idiot…"

"Don't underestimate my power! My father battled with the strongest monsters in the world!" Enrique called back challengingly this time, then dove underwater swimming with blinding speed at them. Three swam out to meet him, but he suddenly blasted a cloud of his poisonous purple gas right at them. Mermaids were too similar for it to do much harm, but in the water it spread like ink and entered their eyes, blinding them long enough for Enrique to spin in place like a whirlpool and send them hurtling toward the edges of the pool. He grabbed one by her tailfins and threw her into the fence.

He lashed out at the other two with his feet and they crashed into the side of the pool. Another mermaid slammed into his chest but Enrique sucked in a breath and thick bony spikes jutted out of his stomach and knocked her away. Before he could recover another mermaid sank her teeth into the back of his neck. Enrique's cry sent a silent of stream bubbles upward, and then the other mermaids piled on him…

* * *

Nigeki clenched the fence with his fingers, deforming the loops of metal. The merman he'd fought when he'd become the Tear struggled to pull free from his enemies but was dragged underwater. Behind him he saw Mrs. Dreemurr casting a questioning look over her shoulder as he herded students away from the pool.

Someone had to do something, but if he went to get help, who knew if Enrique and the other boys would last that long? And if he joined the fight himself, it would almost definitely mean falling in the pool…could he even survive that? If he dared to change into Bloodstone in front of all those attacking mermaids, would that protect him or just make him even more vulnerable?

Someone tugged on his jacket. It was a boy still in his trunks, one of the ones who'd managed to get away when Enrique had noticed what was going on. Behind him were a ragged grouping of other students. Most had just run away, leaving their club booths empty when it was obvious a fight was breaking out. Even though they were monsters underneath the faces of ordinary teenagers, most of them didn't want any part of a deadly battle. Nigeki couldn't really blame them.

But he'd still almost beaten Enrique to death, and now Enrique was risking himself to fight off a bunch of dangerous girls and losing badly himself. Nigeki couldn't just watch.

"Go find the teachers or somebody," he said. "I'll go this way, you guys go that way," he said, pointing back toward the main school building.

"Whatever you say!" And the other students ran off. As Nigeki threw open the gate and stepped onto the pool deck, Moka, Kurumu and Yukari were right behind him. A mermaid spotted them and made a powerful jump at Kurumu, who sprouted her wings and flew out of the way. The mermaid slammed onto the cement deck, but slashed at Moka and Yukari with her claws and strong tail. Yukari waved her wand and a wash tub fell from the sky and knocked the mermaid unconscious.

Moka grabbed Nigeki's wrist and tried to touch his hand to her Rosario and free her true self, but he yanked away. She looked at him in surprise and fear, her eyes probing him as if hoping for an explanation for his refusal.

He looked away, to where Yukari stood on the deck and blasted a pair of mermaids away with a storm of tarot cards and Kurumu swooped down slashing with three-foot-long fingernails. He'd tried to kill Kurumu when he'd changed into a Tear before, but after he'd recovered she'd come to him and tried to make amends. Yukari had saved him from being sliced to pieces by Lord Raptor, and he still wasn't sure why she'd been excited when Moka had claimed they were a couple, but there was another person at this school with some faith in him.

And Moka herself…"It's not part of you, I don't believe that. It's something in you that doesn't belong." That was what she'd said about the Tear sleeping inside him, waiting for the chance to wake and take over his body. And for the second time she was offering to suffer a horrible shock and fight so he didn't have to, even though she'd have the same aversion to water he did.

All of them had seen he could become one beast or another. All accepted it and had faith in him anyway. He wasn't supposed to be getting into fights, he was supposed to be making friends and staying out of trouble to keep the Tear in check.

But could he repay the faith of these three by doing nothing when a fight broke out?

He couldn't.

" **Henshin!** " Nigeki said and his belt appeared and armor flowed into existence around his body. This time there was no yellow light seeping through the eye sockets in his skull mask, and still a feeling of distance from his body as during his fights against Saizou and Lord Raptor.

But this time, it wasn't quite as if another being only driven by the need to prove its superiority was taking over. Instead there was a drive to defeat their enemies but…it was as if it was to save a member of their pack instead.

Then there was no more time to think, as Bloodstone was moving like a blur toward the pool.

" **Blood Cutter** ," came the deathly voice from his belt. The blades on his gauntlets flickered red and red crescents shot from them into the ring of mermaids swarming around Enrique. They screeched and scattered, and Bloodstone took a powerful leap into the middle of the pool.

As soon as his feet touched the water sparks jumped off his body, carving small craters into his armor. His body jerked violently toward the closest edge of the pool, rebelling as currents of agonizing electricity seemed to travel through his body. The blades on his elbows flashed to their full length and he slashed wildly around him to keep any of the hideous mermaids from getting close enough to do any damage. One of them, a girl with flowing pink hair a lot like Moka's, screamed in terror as she saw Bloodstone wading in her direction and swam to the far side of the pool. She desperately dodged out of the way of any of the other mermaids she passed, and wasn't showing a gaping mouth of dangerous teeth or black talons like the others, and for Bloodstone that marked her as one thing: a non-threat.

Another minute and Bloodstone shouldered his way through the water to the middle of the pool, heaved Enrique onto one shoulder and jumped to the edge of the pool.

As he set down the merman, he heard one of them groan in disgust at the throbbing veins crisscrossing his armor. "What _is_ that?" she asked.

"Leave this one to me, girls," said the green-haired mermaid who seemed to be in charge. "Seems like we've got a hero on our hands!"

"If you say so, Tamao…"

Tamao jumped out of the water then swam to the far side of the pool then swam in Bloodstone's direction, waving her tail above the water as she built up force and then stopped against the wall of the pool. The speed she'd built up created a wave that washed over the edge and crashed down on Bloodstone and Enrique before it smashed them through the fence around the pool.

Bloodstone grunted in pain and tried to push himself to his knees but it was a few seconds before enough feeling came back to his body that he could even try. Moka ran to his side and supportively clutched his shoulder. "Nigeki, are you okay?"

But he found he couldn't answer. Whatever instinct was controlling him just stood him up and stepped away from her without saying a word. Enrique's attackers needed to learn what a mistake it was to challenge them. He crouched, and jumped as high as he possibly could.

Bloodstone turned over and over as he climbed higher, building up power. Twenty, thirty, then forty feet before gravity seized him and he started falling again, spinning as he got closer to the water. " **Blood Cyclone** ," said the deathly voice of his belt just before he hit the water.

Hard red pellets sprayed from the edges of Bloodstone's blades as he spun, pelting the mermaids and pushing them to the edges of the pool. But as he spun they grew bigger, blasting away at the sides of the pool before the water could dissolve them. In a second there was a terrible roar as a red whirlwind ripped upward from the water, and the mermaids and their victims alike were sent flying all over the deck.

Bloodstone grabbed onto the edge of the pool hard enough his fingers sank half an inch into the cement and hauled himself out with a snarl of rage from the electric arcs surging all over his body from the slick sheen of water. He fell to his knees next to one of the mermaids. The one who'd desperately avoided him when he'd been trying to save Enrique.

"Please! Please don't hurt me!" she wailed. "I didn't want anything to do with it! I mean it!" Bloodstone raised his arms, and then his armor shifted into a wet consistency and sprayed away, leaving Nigeki in his place, who immediately collapsed.

"I won't hurt you, I promise," he said, his voice dry and strangled. Small bolts of electricity still jumped from his shoulders for a few seconds. "I'm sorry I did that, but I can't completely control what happens after I change, and my friend was in trouble…"

She slowly lowered her arms, apparently convinced by his claims. She certainly didn't look much like the other vicious creatures that had attacked Enrique. Her tail was long and pink like her soft, straight hair. The only thing she had on was a black bikini top showing off entirely too much cleavage, and Nigeki was so numb it was all he could do to roll over onto his other side to make sure he wasn't caught staring. He almost fell back into the pool as he did.

The mermaid giggled, but Nigeki barely heard it. His vision was already swimming as he saw a group of people in all-black uniforms running up the ramp to the pool and throwing the gate open. Then everything went black.

* * *

As soon as Nigeki could see anything he jerked up and touched a hand to the skin over his heart, and to his relief there was only a tiny spot that was cool and smooth like a rock. It had had a chance to spread a little thanks to something unpleasant he'd been dreaming about, but he hadn't been out long enough for it to be very much.

His vision slowly cleared and he saw he was lying in one of two rows of simple white bed with wrought-iron frames. A few of them were occupied by other boys who were still unconscious: the mermaids' victims. In the far corner he though he recognized Enrique.

A middle-aged woman in a white dress was working at a desk at one end of the room, but when she saw Nigeki sit up she scurried out the door and a second later came back with a tall girl in the black uniform of the school's Public Security Committee.

Tall indeed, Nigeki had a feeling she'd be over his head if he was standing up. She had a long blonde ponytail down past her waist, and a massively developed chest he worked hard to avoid staring at, focusing instead on the name on her uniform's chrome name plate: C. Shianus. Hanging from her belt she actually had a long sword in its scabbard, the tip of which dragged on the ground as she walked over to him like it was too big for her. She held a half-eaten carrot in one hand and a clipboard in the other.

"You're awake," she observed simply.

"What happened?" Nigeki asked in a raspy voice. "The thing with the mermaids…"

"You passed out from dehydration, according to the nurses," the girl answered. "According to one of the mermaids who claimed she was coerced into going along with the rest of them, they'd been trying to feed discreetly but the violence broke out when they were discovered by one of their victims. Do you remember seeing anything strange? Besides mermaids drinking from the students' necks?"

Nigeki's throat clenched. "Like what?"

Her eyes narrowed. "A few of them reported someone wearing a mask and red armor being responsible for blasting them all over poolside and half-emptying the pool."

"Maybe they should think of it as 'half-filling'."

" **This is not a joke** ," the girl growled, and Nigeki jumped, fully alert. "If that wasn't just some kind of delusion and a Kamen Rider really has managed to infiltrate the campus, all the students are at risk."

"I know how to recognize them," Nigeki said, avoiding the girl's eyes. "And I didn't see anything like that. I was just trying to save a friend of mine in trouble, and I guess I overdid it running around looking at clubs before that."

She sighed. "All right. You'll have the chance to look at them tomorrow; the club drive was pushed back because of the incident at the pool. But if you remember anything, you let one of us know right away, understood?"

"Understood, Shianus-san. Do I need to stay here, or can I go now?"

She looked over at the nurse who nodded, and said, "You're free to go. Next time there's trouble, get help. Getting into fights isn't what you're here for," she told him sternly.

"I'll keep it in mind," Nigeki said, but slipped away as fast as he could.

* * *

As soon as Nigeki was back in his room he ripped a blood bag open with his teeth and drank until every drop was gone. He sank down against the wall, but at least he could feel his strength coming back.

Resisting the effects of water and using one of Bloodstone's most draining attacks like that had left him dry, and the nine bags of blood still nestled in the corner of his closet, the ones that were supposed to last him the whole semester, seemed pitifully inadequate now.

It wasn't supposed to be like this. If he got into a situation where he was in danger of the Tear awakening, he was supposed to get away and change to Bloodstone in private. Just to keep the Tear in check, not go plunging headfirst into danger and risking exposure.

But he had. And as he passed his hand over his heart and the cool disc of stone covering it, he didn't regret it.

* * *

"You don't have to do this because you feel bad or anything," said the pudgy bespectacled boy, but Nigeki sighed and shook his head.

"Let's not bring that up, okay? Please?" Nigeki asked. "I really do want to try out. Be up in front of people doing something amazing, you know? Break down my barriers?" His family had been trying to avoid exposing him to anything that might cause the darkness in him to show itself. While they'd certainly meant well, after his revelations from yesterday, Nigeki was thinking the opposite might do him more good in the end.

They stood in the school theater along with about a dozen kids coming back from last year's drama club. Ryuunosuke, the pudgy boy, turned out to be the club president, and looked far more pleased with the number of kids who showed up to try out than how many of them were cute girls with the way he and the blonde girl he'd made out with the day before kept smiling at each other.

Nigeki was a little surprised himself at how many there were. Moka, Kurumu and Yukari had immediately announced they were trying out too once Nigeki had said he'd found a club he felt like joining. Also there was the pink-haired mermaid who hadn't joined in the carnage the day before, wearing a black dress over now-human legs, but sitting in a wheelchair. Even Enrique had shown up to try out.

"Hello, class!" an alluring female voice called out, and immediately all eyes turned to the owner, a tall woman with curves evident even through the black blazer and skirt she had on. Her hair was pulled back into a practical ponytail, and was a bright blue that made Nigeki think of clouds. She had on glasses as she entered the theater but took them off, twirled them nimbly around one finger and slid them into her breast pocket as she approached the stage and jumped onto it with casual ease. "My name is Miss Bast…you can call me Miss B if that's easier. I'm going to be the faculty advisor for this club."

The mermaid studied Miss Bast's face thoughtfully. "Haven't I seen you before? I think it was on an album cover…"

"Nya! That's wonderfully flattering of you to say," Miss Bast blushed, but a second later was all business, "Does everyone have a scene picked out for their audition already?"

"Yeah!" Nigeki said, holding up the sheets he'd copied and trying to sound enthusiastic.

"Well that's great!" Miss Bast smiled. "Why don't you go first since you're fired up, cutie?" Nigeki didn't see Kurumu balling her fists.

He got onto the stage and the other kids settled into the seats. Glancing at the sheets of his chosen scene, Nigeki began, "Now is the winter of our discontent, made glorious summer by this sun of York, all the clouds that lowered upon our house…"

* * *

Miss Bast finished reading off the list she'd made of the students who'd made the cut. Moka beamed when she heard Nigeki's name being called, then her face fell when she didn't hear hers. Or Yukari's. It was a little relief when she didn't hear Kurumu's either.

"But…what did we do wrong?" Yukari protested.

Moka had done a reading as Desdemona from Othello, Yukari had picked a scene as Wendy from a version of Peter Pan, and Kurumu had tried to one as Juliet. Nigeki certainly hadn't thought they'd done that bad, but Ryuunosuke and Miss Bast didn't seem to agree.

"I'm sorry, some of you just don't have the kind of spark we're looking for," Miss Bast said apologetically. "But just because you aren't good at one thing doesn't you aren't good at _any_ thing. I'm sure you'll find something else you'll get into." She scribbled something on the bottom of her paper and ripped it off. "In fact, with how adventurous you all showed yourselves yesterday with the incident with the swim club, I think I know one that'd be perfect for you. Why don't you report to this room and see?"

Moka took the slip of paper and walked out of the theater disappointedly. Nigeki watched them go, but she turned toward him and shook her head when he was about to jump down from the stage from the stage and go after her.

Once they were gone, Miss Bast exclaimed, "Okay! Does anybody have any suggestions for productions we could put on this year?"

"The Little Mermaid," the mermaid girl immediately piped up.

"Any others?"

A chorus of production names went up. Romeo and Juliet. Hamlet. Much Ado About Nothing. Kayo Komachi. Even Kanahedon Chusingura, although Nigeki didn't even try to imagine himself in kabuki makeup.

"Phantom of the Opera," Nigeki spoke up.

Miss Bast looked at him appraisingly. "Oh yeah? Thinking you'd make a good Raoul?"

"I was thinking I'd make a decent Erik."

"Well, we can decide later, but those are all interesting ideas. Welcome to the Drama Club, kids!"

The mermaid rolled herself over to Nigeki's side and gently tapped his arm to get his attention. "That was a very interesting choice you made," she said, and her blush deepened even further. "Such a wonderful tragic love story…"

"You're really into those, sounds like?"

She nodded. "My suggestion is very popular with mermaids. It's a dream a lot of us have, to have a star-crossed love like that."

"Well, if we're going to be in the same club maybe we should introduce each other?" he suggested and extended his hand. "I'm Nigeki."

She smiled and shook it. "I'm Meroune. Thank you for not hurting me," she smiled, eyes dancing and cheeks a faint pink.

"You're welcome. Say, um, could you…"

"Keep it a secret?" she whispered, and nodded before she cupped her cheeks to hide her blush deepening. "Of course! A forbidden passion like that is just what I've always wanted!"

"…huh?" Nigeki asked, sporting a huge sweatdrop.

* * *

"Well, if it isn't the new members! You came highly recommended!" gushed Miss Nekonome as Moka, Kurumu and Yukari looked around the room where they'd been directed. There hadn't exactly been a big turnout. The only other student there was a black-haired boy with a pendant shaped like a wolf's head around his neck.

"Isn't there anybody else?" Kurumu asked.

"Fewer's better, in some ways," the boy replied. "Everyone will get to do a bit of everything that way. I wouldn't mind more members, especially when they're all as _charming_ as you three," he broke into a dazzling smile. "But it was everyone else's last year."

"So this is the school newspaper?" Moka asked. "Well, that would have us going all over campus…sure."

The boy grinned even wider. "Ladies! Welcome aboard! I'm the club president Ginei Morioka, and I'd like to make this a great year for everyone!" He bowed to them, and as he did a stack of polaroids of girls changing fell out of his back pocket…

* * *

The Headmaster rose from his desk as his guest entered. "Has everything been…assured?" he asked.

"It has," Felicia nodded. "I'm still not sure I agree that this boy you need me to watch shouldn't be allowed in the same activity as his friends. Keeping his spirits would be a lot easier."

"But being able to carefully guide him wouldn't," the Headmaster repeated. "And it's not as if we're banning from each other's company. They can still see one another outside of their clubs. Any issues?"

"No," Felicia answered. "I think he's on firmer ground than you were worried. Especially after the swim club incident."

"Good. Keep a close eye. That was only the first step."

Felicia nodded slowly. She had a feeling she'd be keeping her eye on Nigeki Hitoribo for a while.

* * *

 **The PSC discover the existence of Nigeki's alternate form here, which promises trouble in the future.**

 **Here I introduce a girl from another monster harem comedy series, but I thought she'd be an okay fit. Meroune not mastering her human form and needing a wheelchair might seem like an odd decision to me, but I wanted to keep her familiar.**

 **Hope you're enjoying.**


	5. Chapter 5: Brink

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 5 – Brink**

Things were settling into a routine at the Newspaper Club. First was roll call, which usually went pretty fast. Second was making sure the club president hadn't found a new way to hide a camera under the meeting table. Third was to report any campus events and decide just how much attention and whose they merited.

It was during this part of their routine that Ginei found himself repeatedly trying to assert authority over the proceedings with mixed success. Kurumu kept suggesting she go and see what the Drama Club was up to even though it was way too early in the year for them to be up to much of anything. Kurumu was usually undiscouraged by such facts, and it was only under a disapproving glare from Moka that Kurumu gave up and brought up something else.

One day the club members arrived only to find a note from Ginei:

"Chasing down material for story. Front-page stuff. Have material for all current assignments ready for submission before leaving today. Keep up the good work, ladies.

-Ginei ^_~"

"Eeeech," Kurumu grimaced at the lech's attempt at a cute signature. She was eying the door when she felt Moka's trademark glare on her again.

"If you keep trying to duck out you're going to end up in trouble," the vampire warned her.

"Oh, like you aren't thinking the exact same thing," Kurumu retorted.

"Maybe, but I'm thinking about making the most of where I am and letting my best friend make the most of where he is, not ditching to keep hanging around even though you didn't make it into the same club."

"I did awesome!" Kurumu declared. "It's not my fault that stupid teacher wouldn't know a great performance if it bit her on the ass!"

Yukari saw the sparks flying and surreptitiously reached for her wand when Kurumu suddenly whipped to face her and the tip of a long pink claw hovered an inch from her face. "Try it you little brat!" Kurumu yelled. "I dare you!"

Then shooting Moka one last irritated glare of her own, Kurumu stalked off to get what she was prepping ready.

An uncomfortable silence filled the club room as everyone split up and got to work, Moka and Kurumu sitting as far away from each other as they could and still shooting each other angry little glances.

An hour slipped by. Kurumu got up and Moka was on her feet in a second. "Where are you going?" Moka asked.

"What are you, my mom?" Kurumu groaned. "Oh wait, even she isn't this bad!"

"Yukari, go see if you can find Ginei," Moka said quietly.

Yukari made a face. "Do I really have to?"

" **Yes** ," Moka said, and Yukari saw how serious she was and left as fast as she could.

After the door closed Moka's eyes narrowed. "Why are you always trying to sneak away? Don't you care about your responsibilities here?"

"Holy shit…," Kurumu muttered under her breath. "Maybe I don't really. Maybe because this was picked for me."

"Just because you tried out doesn't mean you'll get picked. I know that," Moka said.

"Oh, drop it!" Kurumu yelled. "You're on my case because you don't trust me to be around your _boyfriend_ , do you?! Except he isn't! I've got as much right as you do!"

"After what you did? Even if you didn't know about the Tear, you hypnotized him and tried to make him your slave!"

"Save it!" Kurumu yelled in Moka's face. "I can't feel bad about something I did and try to make things better?! Is that what you think?"

"If you feel so bad about it why did you do that in the first place?" Moka demanded. "Nigeki wasn't the first boy you tried that on! How many were there, anyway?"

"Do you even care **why** , or do you think that's just something I **do** because I'm a succubus?" Kurumu asked coldly.

Moka sucked in a deep breath to steady herself before this could get any nastier. "Why, Kurumu?"

Kurumu sighed and looked away for a few seconds before she answered. "We're dying."

"What?"

" **We're dying** ," Kurumu repeated, harder this time. "Succubi. More and more of us are being hunted down or going missing. Last time anyone did an estimate there were only a few thousand left anywhere. Here and in Makai Realm. Everyone's leaning so hard on me to make sure I find somebody and help keep things going. I hypnotized all those boys because I was trying to find my destined partner...I don't feel like I can do it that way anymore, but my mom calls me every single night and wants to know if I've found somebody yet. People I don't even **know** are calling me and asking me that! Hell if I know how they found out I'm here! And my mom chewed me out for half an hour when I told her I wasn't going to use my powers to get boys anymore! You think that was **fun**?!"

At that Kurumu walked away and sat down heavily at the meeting table, her face in her hands. Moka slowly approached and reached out to put a supportive hand on Kurumu's shoulder, but the succubus jerked away.

"Don't. Just leave me alone," Kurumu groaned.

Without a word Moka stepped away, left the club room and shut the door behind her.

Maybe there were some things the young vampire needed to think over.

* * *

 **So ends my little spree, for the moment. Happy Halloween!**


	6. Chapter 6: Closing the Distance

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 6 – Closing the Distance**

"Okay everybody, that's it for today! Nigeki, if you wouldn't mind hanging around for a little bit, that'd be great," Miss Bast said to Youkai Academy's Drama Club.

"See you later, man," Enrique said, giving Nigeki a smile that seemed unusually bright as he ended his conversation with the young vampire and filed out with the other club members. As Nigeki walked over to Miss Bast, she sat down on a desk they'd moved to the middle of the stage, let out a sigh of relief and let her heels fall from her feet and onto the floor. It was a second before Nigeki realized he was staring at her stocking-clad legs.

She snapped her fingers and he jumped. "Hey, cool it," she said, but he was sure there'd been a coy smirk on her lips just before she'd said that. "So, you still thinking we should put on Phantom of the Opera for this term's production?"

"It was just one idea."

"Well, the other kids are starting to let me know what roles in it some of them are thinking about. I think we can probably go ahead and assume that's what it'll be and start set designs soon."

"Really? That's great. Right?"

She chuckled softly. "Yes, I think so. But Nigeki, I needed to ask you something. That girl with the blue hair who keeps coming in to talk to you, is she a friend of yours?"

He nodded. "Yeah. She's in the Newspaper Club."

"Okay. Look, I don't want to give you shit or anything, but clubs aren't just about hanging out with your friends. They're about enriching yourself through the activities. I need you to tell her that, and that she needs to be focusing on her club duties and not just coming around to talk to you all the time. All right?" Miss Bast asked.

"Yes, Bast-sensei," Nigeki answered, looking down. He wasn't liking the idea of telling Kurumu she wasn't welcome, even though he'd known it wasn't really appropriate for her to keep coming around to talk. It would probably be better to take a stand now than later, though…

She extended one leg and touched her toes against his chin, raising Nigeki's face to meet her eyes again. "It's Miss Bast, or **Miss Bee** if that's too hard to remember," she said in a teasing American accent. "Hey, cheer up, okay? You're supposed to be enjoying this, right?"

"I don't know if that's quite the word I heard about high school," Nigeki replied, but did smile a little.

"If you don't now, when you're out of here you'll wish you did," Miss Bast said with a playful smile. "Now get going, kid. I'll see you later."

"Sure thing, **Miss B**. See you around," Nigeki said. Did she wink at him as he turned to go?

Nigeki was at a bit of a loss as to what to do next. It was too early to think about going back to his room yet; homework had been surprisingly light that day and he didn't feel like sucking at playing the flute right then. But all of a sudden he noticed a slight dip in temperature and his predatory instincts twitched with the feeling of somebody nearby.

"Hello? Is someone there?" he called.

No answer, but the feeling of an unseen presence remain. Nigeki even thought he could feel the Bloodstone tingling a little at his waist, urging him to activate it and go on the attack against whatever was setting his senses on edge.

The air got even colder and Nigeki's fangs jutted from his gums. He started walking back to the dorms expecting Saizou or even Lord Raptor to come screaming out of the woods intent on a rematch. He'd passed the corner of the main building when someone yelled at him.

"Hey!"

Nigeki whipped around and landed with his feet planted, then saw Moka Akashiya running up to him. "Was that you?"

"Was what me?" she panted when she stopped next to him.

"I had a feeling somebody was near but they didn't answer. Didn't you hear me calling you?"

"No."

Nigeki knitted his brow. "Weird," he mumbled. If it hadn't been Moka, and what reason would she have to sneak up on him, what had set him on edge like that? "What's going on? Looks like you have something you need to tell me."

"I do," his fellow vampire nodded. "You want to get a drink before we talk? My treat."

"Uh, sure," Nigeki said, looking around one last time, and sure he saw a flash of lavender behind a tree before they left.

* * *

Moka popped the top on a can of tomato juice while Nigeki bought a can of iced coffee with his own money at his insistence. He still had the feeling that whatever had set him off before was around, and wanted to stay sharp until he knew he was safe after all the fights he'd already found himself in.

"Why do you keep looking around?" Moka asked.

"Always looking out for trouble. Can you blame me after how many times I've had to change to Bloodstone already?"

"You should really relax. That helps you keep from changing to the…other thing, right?"

"…yes," Nigeki admitted. "But I can't really help it, can I? I'm supposed to keep a low profile but I've already been in a bunch of fights. Anyway, you wanted to talk about something," he prompted Moka.

"I really think you need to talk to Kurumu," Moka answered.

"What about?" Nigeki replied. "She comes by the Drama Club all the time, she only tries to talk to me," he said, and for a second Moka scowled, but he didn't notice in time. "Even though I don't know anything I could tell her that deserves to go in the school paper. Miss Bast has been letting us get away with just talking about plays we like and stuff like that. I think she's trying to let us get used to each before we start acting with each other, or something."

But he shut up when he saw how serious Moka looked. Worried. "Is it that bad?"

Moka nodded slowly. "Kurumu's under a lot of pressure from her family to meet somebody, she said. That's why she keeps coming to talk to you."

Nigeki flinched. "W…what? Look, I'm still getting used to being allowed off the grounds without someone watching me. I'm not worrying about dating yet."

Moka's face fell a little and she looked away. "Maybe you're right."

"I'll talk to her if you think it's important," Nigeki assured her. "But she doesn't need to keep coming after me because she feels bad about me changing, I should've gotten out of there. But maybe…" Nigeki trailed off. He was supposed to be laying low, making friends and not getting in trouble here at a regular school. But if Kurumu hadn't pushed him into changing, she'd still be bewitching boys. Even if Kurumu was taking heat from her family over it for the time being, hadn't something positive still been achieved? It was seeming like she wanted to form an honest connection now.

"I'll talk to her," Nigeki promised. "Having your family tell you you're not living right sucks, even if sometimes they have a point."

"Good. I knew you'd understand," Moka smiled and finished her drink. "But let's try to hang out a little more, okay?"

"I haven't stopped thinking of you as a friend because we're not in the same club," Nigeki said, as if he was surprised by the idea. "Don't worry, we will. Promise."

She smiled again, and Nigeki felt lighter. For a second he was eeven sure he could feel the Tear's shell on his skin shriveling. "Good! Thanks for this. I really appreciate it."

"Me too," Nigeki said. "See you soon, okay?"

Moka beamed and nodded in reply, "You bet!" Then they went off in opposite directions, Nigeki wondering how he could relate to family pressure to use mind control to get laid.

* * *

Almost as soon as Moka was out of sight Nigeki felt he was being watched again, but this time he clenched his teeth and decided to take a different approach. He kept walking back to the boys' dorm without giving any indication he knew he was being followed. Slowly, subtly, he edged closer to the trees bordering the trail he was walking down.

Then suddenly he dropped his bag on the ground and darted into the woods, the darkness deepening in his vision as his predatory instincts took over. The outlines of trees and roots became starker allowing him to pick out shapes more quickly as his eyes shifted to those of a creature of the night.

He ran low, moving quickly and quietly around the outlines of tree branches toward a small point of orange he saw, the warmth of a living thing hiding among the trees. Strange, it was so much fainter, colder than he'd remembered from the few times he'd allowed himself to do this before.

But as soon as he was close enough he launched himself at the outline of warmth that he was sure was his pursuer and tackled them.

A girl's gasp of surprise was the response just before they hit the ground, and Nigeki snapped out of his hunting mindset. He stared down into the ice blue eyes of a girl with long lavender hair. She had on a white sweatshirt with blue sleeves, pink and purple striped stockings below her uniform skirt and, strangely, a leather belt tied around her left thigh. The white stick of a lollipop stuck out of her mouth, which was formed into a shy smile.

"Hi," she said with no emotion at all.

"Why were you following me?" Nigeki asked, and his skin crawled before he followed by asking, "And why don't you seem like you care that I caught you?"

"Because I'm glad," she said, again totally flat and calm. Nigeki almost expected her to add, "Can't you tell?"

Nigeki stared at her in confusion and stood up before somebody came by and saw him pinning a girl he'd never seen before. He dragged her up until she was standing next to him, but she had an annoyed pout firmly on her face by the time he did.

"Why were you following me?" Nigeki repeated himself.

"You're a loner too."

"I'm what?"

She smiled in slight amusement. "You act uncomfortable all the time when you talk to people. You spent a whole week running away from that one girl even though she wouldn't stop trying. It's like you never had any friends before. But how you turn into that red thing with the skull face when you're in trouble, it's kind of understandable."

Nigeki's body went rigid and his throat went dry. "What do you know about it?" he croaked.

"A lot," she smiled. "You're fun to watch."

He wasn't sure to be afraid or embarrassed at hearing that. "You've been stalking me?" he gasped, but didn't run like he felt he should. She knew about Bloodstone, and she'd let him catch her besides. She probably wanted something…

"Uh huh," the girl blushed. "You're strong. I like the red one more than the black one, though."

"The black one is bad," Nigeki warned her.

"No, it's cool. But the red one's cooler."

Nigeki sighed and sucked in a breath. "Look, what do you want so you won't tell—"

She pressed two chilly fingers against his fingertips. "It's my secret," she smiled. Nigeki didn't think he'd ever been so confused in his life. Had his family sent him to school figuring he'd meet someone like this?

He tried to steady himself, normalize this bizarre situation. "So…how are you settling in at school?" was the first thing he thought to ask.

"School's lame," was the girl's immediate reply.

"Oh, I don't know," Nigeki said. "If nothing else I'm finally getting to be around people besides my family. I got into a couple fights—"

"Mm-hmm," the girl purred in approval.

"…but I'm feeling a lot more relaxed about…well, certain things anyway. Maybe it technically isn't as safe, but I'm handling it a lot better here than I did at home, and my family's getting to focus a lot more on their work without always keeping an eye on me. I think it's working out for the best," Nigeki said, trying to give off a confident smile.

"Huh," the girl said. "Really?"

He nodded. "Yeah. Pretty sure, anyway."

"That's heavy," she answered.

"Yeah…look, you really won't tell anybody?"

She smiled and stepped away. "I told you. It's my secret. See you around." Then she seemed to melt into the trees, and this time Nigeki let her. He had a feeling she meant it. There had been something about her, like she really had finally met someone she finally thought she had something in common with.

He wondered what that felt like.

* * *

At the next Drama Club Ryuunosuke called roll as fast as he could and then he and his blonde beauty got up and disappeared into a far corner of the wings for a **very** private conversation. Nigeki had been hoping an upperclassman, and one obviously so versed with the ladies might have some advice to help him with Kurumu's issue.

But there were other perspectives. As soon as the president and his lady excused themselves Meroune stopped by his side. "I read to the end of the play you suggested," she said, beaming and cheeks a light pink. "It's so sad the way Erik feels about Christine…it's exactly what we should put on!"

"You're really into those, huh?...Hmmm, say, Meroune, can I ask you a question?"

Her blush brightened at the affection but she nodded. "Of course! Ask me anything!" she exclaimed. "And don't be so formal…Mero-chan is fine…"

"Well, um…I have this friend, right? Her family's leaning on her really hard to meet somebody, and they want her to, um, cheat to do it. But she doesn't want to cheat anymore."

Meroune looked at him, puzzled. "Cheat? To get dates? How?"

"With monster powers," Nigeki answered quietly, as it wasn't something they were supposed to be openly discussing.

"Oooooh!" Meroune nodded. "I see!"

"So…so I should really go and try to make her feel better about it, but I don't really know what to tell her. On the one hand people shouldn't be mind-controlled into going out with somebody, but it's not always that simple. I mean…I probably shouldn't be allowed out of the house, but I still think it's working out for the best. My dad tells me they've made a pair of big breakthroughs on the family project after I came to school since they can focus all their energy on that. I don't know, maybe sometimes you have to do something extreme to ensure your survival when you're an endangered species…" he rambled.

"So your friend, her kind is dying? Is that what you're saying?" Meroune asked.

"Uh-huh."

Meroune took Nigeki's hand in hers. "I think you might be overcomplicating this," she answered. "This is a serious problem for her people, but tricking or controlling people into obeying her wishes is wrong, even if it's for the good of her people, wouldn't you say? Even if the benefits are good, isn't achieving them hollow if you've forced other people to help you? Real triumphs come because people have been convinced of the worth of a goal and fought for it with their own effort, not because they were forced to achieve it. I don't agree forcing someone to help with a goal is worth it, and I don't think you do either."

Nigeki scratched his scalp with his other hand. This was getting him to think about his own situation, and coming clean to someone about at least the basics of it was something he was feeling he had to do. "Meroune-chan, what if I told you I had kind of a dark secret myself? That by all rights I should be kept somewhere people can make sure I don't do any damage? Even if I'm kind of lucky in having made friends who can help me deal with it better than my family could keeping me around where they can supervise me?"

"Everyone's got the right to live their own life, don't you think?" Meroune replied with a question of her own.

"Well, yes, that's what I'd think…"

She smiled up at him. "So, if what you need is friendship and support, and you can't get it one place, then you should be allowed to get it someplace else. You make it sound like you're doing better here than when you were being kept confined and watched every minute. If that's what you're saying happened to you."

"It was!" Nigeki exclaimed more forcefully than he'd met, drawing stares from a few of the other club members for a few seconds before they went back to their own business. More quietly he went on, "It was, my family watched me all the time to make sure I didn't give in and do something dangerous. But since I got here I've met some amazing people and I think I'm doing a lot better." He looked her straight in the eye. "And I keep finding out how amazing the people I meet can be all the time. Thanks Mero-chan, you were a big help."

Meroune squealed and pulled her hand away, cupping her cheeks and looking down so Nigeki couldn't see her face. All the club members looked up at them then, and Nigeki struggled to think of what to say to them, wondering what all this might look like to a teenage imagination. Enrique broke away from the group he'd been talking to and came over. "Everything okay, you guys?"

Before Nigeki could answer, Meroune did for him. "Everything's…wonderful," she said, still not looking up, but giggled quietly.

* * *

Before the president had actually called an end to the club meeting, Nigeki was leaving to go over to the Newspaper Club's meeting room to try and catch Kurumu before she left. He hadn't gone five steps before he was stopped dead in his tracks.

"Got somewhere to be, Nigeki?" Miss Bast called out to him.

"I really need to go talk to a friend of mine, and I want to catch her before her club meeting's over."

"Well, since you're being such a good friend, would you mind doing a favor for someone else?" she said, and then the girl with the lavender hair from the other night, lollipop still sticking out of her mouth which was curled up in a gentle smile, appeared from the shadows of some old scenery. "Mizore here's finally decided to start attending school functions, and we want to make sure she actually knows where everything is. Show her around, okay?" Then she turned to Mizore herself. "Let him settle this thing with his friend before he takes you on the grand tour, all right?"

"Okay," Mizore answered, but her expression had gone neutral.

"Let's go," Nigeki said and held out his hand, and Mizore clenched her fingers around it making Nigeki wince. As they left he saw Meroune looking at them uncertainly.

Mizore relaxed her grip a little after they left the theater, but there was an undeniable intensity in the grasp of her cool hand around his. She stayed silent for most of the walk, drawing a few stares from other students who'd been let out of their clubs already. Nigeki tried not to pay attention to them, and to break the silence with Mizore, he asked as gently as he could, "So, you haven't been going to class, then? Why not?"

"I told you. School's lame," she replied.

"What changed your mind, then?"

"I just decided to try it," she said, and Nigeki was positive her eyes darted over to him and a coy smirk passed over her lips.

As they got near the main building Nigeki turned toward where he remembered Moka showing him where the Newspaper Club met, and walking down the path toward them was Kurumu, looking like it was taking a supreme effort for her not to lift the dark-haired boy next to her over her head and break him in half.

"Get lost, Ginei," she finally snapped, and the boy backed off. He jumped back at the force of her words and held up his hands defensively and walked away quickly. As he did his eyes stopped on Mizore, then on her holding Nigeki's hand. Nigeki narrowed his eyes slightly, wondering who this guy was and what his intentions might be, especially if he'd pissed off Kurumu so much. It didn't take this Ginei boy much to figure out this wasn't the time to do anything, and he scampered away.

"Hey, Kurumu!" Nigeki waved, and the succubus smiled as she recognized him, but paused as she saw him holding hands with another girl.

"That's your friend?" Mizore asked, slowly and coldly.

"Yeah. I'll be back in a minute and we can do the…tour? Promise," Nigeki said and Mizore reluctantly let him go and he jogged over to Kurumu.

"Who's she?" Kurumu asked, a little suspiciously.

"Someone I'm showing around."

Kurumu cocked her head. "Showing around? We're supposed to have clubs picked out already, but she's just starting?"

"Look, that's not why I wanted to catch you. Moka told me about your mom being on your ass about not wanting to mind control boys anymore."

"Well…no, I don't," Kurumu said, looking abashed. "Look what happened I tried to do it to you."

"That's kinda my fault too. I'm here under false pretenses, remember. And I should've gotten away when I noticed something going wrong. My family told me a million times the kinds of things that could set off the Tear," Nigeki said as reassuringly as he could.

"But my point is, I really want you to know I think you're doing the right thing, even if you're catching shit from your family about it. And I'm proud of you for wanting to make things right with me even though I tried to kill you."

Kurumu smiled and tickled a finger under his chin. " **You** didn't try to kill me. You wouldn't be proud of me for how I'm doing if you wanted to kill me."

"Well—" Nigeki started to say but then Kurumu grabbed the sides of his head and pulled him into a kiss.

It was quick, but Kurumu pushed hard against him. But when she broke it her cheeks were pink and she had a soft, almost shy smile on her face.

"Bet that was more fun than with your sister," she winked at him as Nigeki struggled to remember how words worked. He managed to recover his footing but then his eyes settled on Mizore, who stood staring at the two of them, and after a second tears started to pool in the corners of her eyes. He'd just started to open his mouth when she turned and ran into the woods.

* * *

She should've known. When she'd finally found someone who **got** her, but seemed like he **got** school too, didn't it just figure somebody else would've already claimed him? And that he'd say she was only a friend?

Mizore stopped after a few minutes of dashing through the trees, tripping over gnarled roots and scratching herself on low-hanging branches to catch her breath. She had no idea where she was going, but she didn't care, as long as it took her away from that school. Away from Nigeki Hitoribo and his trashy "friend".

Not far behind her she could hear voices. Was he coming after her?

"…I was supposed to show her around! You didn't have to kiss me!"

"Oh, you liked it!"

"That's not the point!"

Again Mizore ran as fast as she could. Another few minutes she stopped, legs aching and lungs burning, at a cliff overlooking the blood-red sea.

Ever since she was little, Mizore had always watched people from afar, seeing them doing everyday things that always seemed so stupid. She'd felt so above all those people as they got so into their games or their lessons, when none of it seemed to matter for anything. They were happy they got a 100 on their test, or their team won the game, or the girl they really liked said yes when they asked her out. So what? Before you knew it there'd just be another test, and another game, and another girl who was even prettier than the last one.

When she'd seen that strange boy with even more monstrous shape he was hiding than most of the kids at their school, and she allowed herself to feel hope there could be someone she could relate to. Then he'd spotted her, and talked to her, and hadn't minded that she'd been following him around without him even knowing. She'd felt something she never had before.

And it had been a lie. He'd known she was following him before he'd acted on it the other day; had he known all along? Had he been sneaking in time with his slut when Mizore had gone to sleep? Had he been planning to play Mizore like that too?

She walked to the edge of the cliff and stared down. A good hundred feet at least. But suddenly she was distracted from such thoughts by the sound of a twig snapping. She turned around, icy claws forming around her hands as she expected to see Nigeki coming for her. Instead it was one of the teachers. A fit-looking man in a white track suit with a mop of bristly red hair. Kotsubo, she seemed to remember his name being. A couple of times she almost hadn't skipped his classes.

"All right now, step back from there, please. Things can't be that bad," he said slowly, like he was trying to make a point not to encourage her to do something desperate.

Slowly Mizore stepped away from the edge. "What are you doing out here?" Kotsubo asked. "You're not supposed to this far away from campus."

"I don't know," Mizore muttered. "What about you?"

"I heard someone crashing around out here and wanted to make sure there was no trouble. Is something wrong? Why are you so far away from campus?"

Mizore stared at the ground. "I guess…I guess I'm depressed because I thought somebody really liked me, but…"

Kotsubo nodded slowly and leaned against a tree. "That's rough, but you know something? I went through that a couple times when I was your age too. It happens, and you know what? It isn't the end of the world."

"Oh yeah?"

He smiled and nodded again. "Yeah. I know you probably feel like this has never happened to anybody but you, but that's how a lot of pain feels at your age. It's not as bad as you think."

"I don't know…"

He slid his arm around her shoulder. "Come on!" he laughed. "Wounds heal, you know. They do, and you move on. Really."

"Really?"

Kotsubo nodded.

Then suddenly he pushed her down on the ground, and before she could recover from her shock he'd straddled her waist. Mizore shrieked and struggled, her hair starting to shift and shimmer, turning into icicles, but Kotsubo pinned her by the wrists with arms that were suddenly dark purple tentacles. More of the rubbery arms erupted from his back and one started to slither under Mizore's skirt…

…and then they heard the sound of a clicking camera.

Kotsubo and Mizore both looked up and there stood Kurumu holding a camera in front of her face as she snapped another picture, and another as he screamed and lunged at her. But before Kotusbo could grab her a figure in red came flying out of the trees and slammed a gauntleted fist into his face. Kotsubo went skidding along the ground and off the edge of the cliff but his tentacles snapped out and grabbed the edge.

Bloodstone stood up, the eye sockets of his mask devoid of light. Kotsubo was back on the ground in a second and lashed out at Bloodstone with three of the thick tentacles on one side, smashing through tree trunks like matchsticks. But as they slammed into Bloodstone's body he dug in his feet and was only pushed back a few inches, and Kotsubo let out a cry of surprise and alarm as Bloodstone grabbed two of his tentacles and used the momentum of his own swing to throw Kotsubo's rubbery bulk into the air. But Kotsubo curled the tentacles around Bloodstone's arms and pulled him along as he went flying.

As they crashed deeper into the woods Kurumu grabbed Mizore by the arm and pulled her up. "Come on, we need to get out of here!"

"…why are you guys helping me?" Mizore asked quietly.

Kurumu gave her a confused look. "What do you mean? You think we'd see something like that happening and not help?!"

"…I guess not," Mizore answered.

* * *

The sound of the two fighters clashing echoed through the woods. Kotsubo threw hard slaps with his many long tentacles trying to hold Bloodstone at bay with his superior reach, but Bloodstone weathered the pounding before he suddenly shot in and slammed a fist into the kraken's chest hard enough to pulverize rock. Then before Kotsubo could retaliate Bloodstone somersaulted over his head, kicked him hard between the shoulders to knock Kotsubo off-balance, then hooked his arms around Kotsubo's chest and flung him backward in a suplex, driving him headfirst into the ground.

But Kotsubo's tentacles lashed out, coiled around Bloodstone's legs and pulled him to the ground. He jumped and crashed down with all of his weight onto Bloodstone's back. Kotsubo's rubbery skin crawled as the vampiric beast didn't make a sound of pain, even as Kotsubo slammed into his spine again, splintering the ground

As he jumped and came down again Kotsubo started to panic. He knew he needed to finish off his enemy and go after that girl with the camera, but Bloodstone did nothing to acknowledge his injuries. His body jerked slightly but he didn't cry out, or bleed, anything else. This was no ordinary monster…

Again Kotsubo jumped but as he came down Bloodstone whipped onto his side and slashed with his arm-blade which bit into the kraken's chest. Then Bloodstone's buckle emitted a dry voice: " **Knuckle Burst.** " He threw a punch at the cut across Kotsubo's chest and a globe of thick red **something** formed on his best and exploded as it connected. Kotsubo was thrown back twenty-five feet and landed in a tangle of tentacles. The cut from Bloodstone's blade seemed to burn, and he gaped in horror as he saw the droplets of red from Bloodstone's punch crawling inside the gash by themselves.

His body contorted from side to side suddenly with the feeling of tiny knives slicing at his insides. Kotsubo gasped in fear as Bloodstone came charging at him, another punch aimed at his chest. He ducked and ran past Bloodstone, grabbing a severed tree trunk in his tentacles and then heaving it at the vampire as hard as he could.

The tree slammed into Bloodstone and he seemed to float in the air for a few seconds before he crashed to the ground again. Spikes of wood stood impaled into his armor.

Then he got to his feet.

What kind of monster was this? He hardly seemed to have any kind of fighting skill, but his power was incredible, and he only kept coming no matter how many times Kotsubo hit him as hard as he could.

The pain in Kotsubo's chest got even worse as whatever had been on Bloodstone's fist started to squirm further out from the cut. His body jerked and squirmed grotesquely and he realized with terror he couldn't control himself to fight back as Bloodstone closed the distance between them to attack.

The jewel in Bloodstone's belt flared, turning almost white as he gathered his power and launched his next attack. " **Blood Riser** ," it said and he pounded his fists into the ground a second before a red geyser erupted under Kotsubo's feet and blasted him into the air, tossing him ass over tea kettle again and again before Bloodstone suddenly seemed to appear in the air next to him, and threw another punch with a red orb that exploded against Kotsubo, spiking him into the ground like a giant purple volleyball. He dug into the ground until he crashed into a tree and snapped it in half.

Bloodstone landed in a crouch, but looked up as two black-clad members of the Student Police dashed into sight. "Hold it right there, whatever you are!" one of them yelled at Bloodstone, but there was a slight quaver in his voice as his brain went down the list of the telltale signs of one of the most dreaded types of monster-killers.

Suddely Bloodstone released his armor and red sludge sprayed all over the clearing. It splattered against the polices' eyes and knocked them down, and by the time they managed to clear their vision, there was no sign of Bloodstone but the scene of destruction he'd left behind.

But someone else had seen everything, and a tiny shape vanished into the shadows.

* * *

Nigeki, Kurumu and Mizore split up as they ran so they'd be harder to catch. Mizore just seemed to disappear between blinks, but that was something she'd probably had a lot of practice doing. Kurumu ran off as they passed a path back to the main school building, probably to get the pictures she'd taken ready.

But Nigeki himself kept going, rounding the edge of the cliff at the end of campus, deciding to make a circuit to get as far away from where he'd fought Kotsubo and maybe hide out for a while in case the Security Committee was watching the buildings and asked any ugly questions about whether he'd seen or heard anything right after a teacher was beaten within an inch of his life.

He heart seemed to stop in his chest when he saw someone coming down the trail. Not a student he could easily shake off, either. It was that chubby science teacher with the dancing robot doll she made, Miss Alphaisa. As he tried to run around her she suddenly grabbed him with surprising strength and kept him from running off. Were those wires sticking out from the sleeves of her blouse?

"Where are you in such a hurry to be?" she demanded.

A dozen plans raced through Nigeki's mind in a second, terrified that he'd been caught by a teacher and that his secret was about to be discovered. He thought about saying he was on his way to meet someone, that he was stressed out after class and needed to blow off some steam with a run, but in a moment of desperation he decided to do something he'd never done.

Play innocent.

"Didn't you hear all those noises just now?" he gasped. "It sounded like a fight, like they were fighting as monsters! I was getting the hell away from that!"

Her eyes went wide. "A fight?!" she asked, but with adrenaline still thundering through his system after his fight with Kotsubo, Nigeki's awareness was unusually heightened, and Miss Alphaisa's surprise seemed strangely…forced.

"You go to your room and lock the door. Right now," she went on. "I'm going to go let somebody know about the fight."

Then she scuttled off without another word.

* * *

A group from the Student Police stood in the corner and discussed in anxious whispers the entire time Kotsubo lay in the nurse's office having his wound thoroughly cleaned. The medical personnel had no idea what the dark red matter from Bloodstone's attack was, except that its outer coating resembled blood, yet the whole thing appeared to some kind of primitive life form itself. Thankfully, they'd apparently died quickly.

Once the nurse assured Kotsubo she was sure she'd found everything in his wound and left to empty the bowl containing the evil stuff, one of the Student Police's captains came over. He was a tall, intimidating boy with long blond hair and yellow eyes along with slightly pointed ears even in his human form. Kotsubo felt like he was standing near a fire as the boy looked down at him and spoke.

"Sensei, you have my deepest condolences at being the victim of an encounter with a Rider. You should be glad you escaped with your life, usually they'll settle for nothing less than their target's complete annihilation," he said.

"It's a good thing your people got there when they did," Kotsubo replied, a feeling gnawing at the pit of his stomach that this boy knew he wasn't just an innocent victim.

"Indeed. But I hope you understand what a panic it would cause if word got out that rumors of a Kamen Rider on campus were more than just rumors," the captain said. "So I would appreciate your cooperation in not spreading this around until we know more."

"You can count on it," Kotsubo said, just eager to be left alone.

The captain nodded and smiled in a strange, sadistic way, Kotsubo thought. "Yes, I'm sure I can," he replied. "You see, we must address the other matter as well."

"What other matter?"

The captain's smile got wider, and darker. "The matter of some courageous, if anonymous, monster bringing a certain set of photographs to my attention."

Kotsubo clenched his teeth.

* * *

Kurumu found Nigeki just after classes ended, and he'd barely registered her presence before she shoved a bag of fresh-made cookies into his hand.

"Hey," she said, quietly, a little uncertainly. Almost as if she was expecting him to already know what was on her mind.

"Hey," he said in return. "You doing okay?"

"Yeah, I think so. But about, you know, before?"

"Yeah…about that. Kurumu, I think you're really pretty, and you're doing better trying to be nice, but this is the first time my family's ever let me out of the house on my own. I'm not really thinking about dating yet."

She smiled. "That's okay, we can skip to the good parts."

"I'm serious, Kurumu," Nigeki replied.

Kurumu nodded at that and looked away for a second. "So…maybe later?"

"Yeah, maybe later. Friends now, though?"

She looked him in the eye for a second, then suddenly she leaned forward and kissed him on the mouth again. "For now," she answered with a wink.

"It was nice," Nigeki said gently.

"Hmmm?"

"Just now, and before."

"Oh," Kurumu said, and her smile got a little wider. "Thanks…see you later."

Nigeki headed to his own club meeting then, and as he went down the paths he couldn't help noticing he saw students in Student Police uniforms going around in pairs and drawing uncomfortable stares from the other students. At least, until the Police looked back. It was as if they were making a point to be seen. After a faculty member had been assaulted by a Kamen Rider who'd somehow gotten inside the barrier, Nigeki supposed it wasn't unreasonable for them to be worried…

He opened the doors to the theater and found everyone else already there. What he saw on stage then stopped him in his tracks.

"…and this is a really new experience for her, so I want everybody to help out our club's new member if there's anything she needs, all right?" Miss Bast said, holding out her arm to indicate a girl standing in the middle of the stage.

Mizore.

She ran her fingers through her long lavender hair and several boys immediately stepped forward and offered their assistance in helping her get settled. But she looked right past them and locked eyes with Nigeki, her mouth turning up in a faint smile around her lollipop.

He figured he'd be repeating himself soon. But as he climbed up to the stage and Mizore stepped away from the other students, he wondered if he needed to be taking it so slow after all.

* * *

In her darkened room, Miss Alphaisa typed out an email.

"…and for the last time, Undie, this country is not 'the nerd capital of the world.' I miss you and I wish you'd change your mind about coming to live here. Besides, Akihabara's great! They've got **everything** there! Please at least think about it. And write back soon. Love, Alphys"

Then she sent it off. She waited a minute, sighed, and then opened a secured, secret connection and started typing up a new email.

"No further developments on Subject V-1. Powers contained, but still one to watch. Subject V-2, on the other hand, has manifested again. A teacher is in serious condition (a condition he deserves, but I digress) after this most recent manifestation. Will continue to monitor, but not sure I can handle it myself if manifestation runs out of control. Already unlike any monster I've ever seen."

* * *

 **Looks like I managed to finish another chapter before the month was over after all. Dang.**

 **I'd been considering a pair of different resolutions for Kotsubo, but didn't really think they were doable. So, justice is dispensed, but by somebody the longtime fans might find a little unlikely. Somebody who's probably going to be happy for a little good PR from it, though.**

 **Anyway, Happy Halloween! Again!**


	7. Chapter 7: Masks

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 7 – Masks**

At the next meeting of the Drama Club, Nigeki was surprised to have, Ryuunosuke, the club president actually call the club to order instead of sneaking off to make out with his girlfriend. Nigeki couldn't help noticing that Ryuunosuke was being sharply observed by Miss Bast, the faculty adviser, the whole time.

"It's about time for us to start getting ready on our production for the term, and I wanted everyone to know I've appointed Ren here our head costume designer," Ryuunosuke said, indicating a girl Nigeki and his friends in the club had seen a few times but never really talked to. She had curly blonde hair and her narrow triangular face was covered in makeup, dominated with the color lavender in her eye liner and blush. Her uniform was modified a little with stockings and stiletto heels, and over her hands she wore lace gloves that only covered the middle finger on each hand, leaving the rest of them bare. Her fingernails were the same color as her lips.

Ren waved lightly in acknowledgement to the rest of the club, but for a second her eyes settled on Nigeki, with Mizore standing inches away on one side and Meroune sitting beside him in her wheelchair on the other. Her gray eyes seemed cold, like a snake about to spring, and set his hunter's instincts on edge. Did she somehow know about him being Bloodstone and getting into all those fights? Was she going to report him to the disciplinary committee if she found some way to prove it?

"So, if I understand this right you're going to be playing our Phantom, Hitoribo-san?" Ren asked in a slightly low voice. Had that been why she'd looked at him so closely? Just that?

"He is if nobody else is interested…?" Miss Bast asked the club in response. None of the students answered. "I guess we're still auditioning the rest of the parts after this, then."

Ryuunosuke raised his hand. "Raoul's been filled, too."

"No he hasn't, director-san," Miss Bast said with a smile. The pudgy boy looked down, crestfallen.

Ren came over and looked Nigeki in the face. "Hmmmm…You know, 'Phantom of the Opera' is kind of a strange choice."

"I guess I relate, a little," Nigeki replied, his throat going dry. "Cut off from everyone else, I mean." There was something more to Ren, he was sure of it. What?

Meroune and Mizore glared at Ren, who didn't seem to notice. Miss Bast clapped her hands then. "Could I get all of our would-be heroines over here to show us their pipes, as we say in America?"

Casting suspicious glances over their shoulders as they went, Meroune and Mizore joined a group of girls on the other of the auditorium, then Miss Bast demonstrated a long series of notes, veering high, low, and ever higher, keeping it up for most of a minute before she stopped, a proud grin on her face as she didn't look at all out of breath. Evidently she'd been doing this sort of thing for a while. Then she had the girls repeated her one at a time.  
"Strange isn't bad," Ren said, getting Nigeki's attention again. "I kind of like strange, personally," she purred.

"That's…nice."

"You are so tense. What are you worried about?"

Nigeki gulped but tried not to let Ren notice. "Look, I was staying with my family my whole life before I got to come here, okay? I'm not really used to socializing with so many other kids."

Ren chuckled at that. "Ooooh, are you popular? That must be rough."

Nigeki felt his fangs starting to edge outward in anger at Ren's teasing, but he shut his eyes for a second and sucked in a breath. Not just to keep any trace of the Tear from creeping out, as small as that worry seemed to be since he started actually making friends, but because, well, he did have a strong group of friends already.

That **was** something to be grateful for, something to embrace. He finally had a good thing going for himself after all, and he needed to learn how to enjoy it, not get all annoyed at them for teasing him.

"Thanks," Nigeki said, smiling lightly.

"You're welcome," Ren said as if she knew exactly what he meant, but flowed right into another thought. "If you're going to be the Phantom, we're going to need to do something about your face. No offense."

"Hey Ren, you better stay away from that guy unless you're looking for a broken heart. Don't you know he's already taken?" called a somewhat snide voice from across the stage. The owner was a lanky boy with shiny black hair pulled down over one side of his face. He hadn't been too involved with the rest of the club, but Nigeki knew his name: Shingai Furabuki.

"No, I'm not," Nigeki stated.

But Ren just laughed lightly and brushed a finger along the edge of Nigeki's ear. "It doesn't matter anyway. Look, you're cute, okay? But you're not my type. I'll enjoy working to make you the perfect Phantom, though," she said with a wink.

"How do you know I'm not your type?" Nigeki blurted out. "You don't even know me." As he said that he saw Mizore and Meroune turning to look back at him, and saw how close Ren was standing.

"Oooooh," she purred, a soft chuckle creeping in at the end. "Looks like I'm not welcome. But I'll catch you later and we'll figure how to make you the scariest Phantom the school's ever seen. Think about **that** for a bit," Ren smiled and slipped away.

* * *

Nigeki had hardly even left the classroom of his last class of the day when a beautiful girl in a wheelchair bumped into him.

"Ah, there you Hitoribo-san!" It was Meroune, and she beamed up at him. "Miss Bast picked me to play Christine! Isn't that great? She said I had the best vocal range on somebody my age she'd ever heard!"

"That **is** great!" Nigeki replied. He'd never really thought about it before, but somehow it seemed natural for a mermaid to have a nice singing voice.

"I'm glad you think so," she said, her cheeks turning pink at his enthusiastic response. "Maybe I could show you what I could do with the music she wanted me to learn, and you could tell me what you think…?"

"Sure!" Nigeki said, and leaned against a tree, looking at her expectantly.

Meroune fidgeted and looked around for a few seconds, not starting. "You mean…out here?" she asked.

Nigeki blinked. "I'm sorry, did you have somewhere else in mind?"

She nodded, looked hard over her shoulder as if she saw something and suddenly pointed toward the boys' dorm. "Maybe we could go up to your room and I could show you in private…?"

"Uh, sure!" Nigeki said, and again Meroune's face turned pink. As Nigeki wheeled her away he failed to see Ren walk up and look around for him.

* * *

He steered Meroune over to the front doors of the dorm, and stopped at the main stairway. Nigeki looked up at it thoughtfully for a minute, down at Meroune who was still smiling gently, then lifted her out of the wheelchair and sat her down in the crook of his arm, then collapsed the wheelchair and picked it up in his other hand before starting to climb the stairs with a grunt of strain.

Needless to say his fellow students they passed on the way up stopped and stared at the two as they went by. Meroune smiled as Nigeki carried, legs dangling beneath, up the landing of the second floor, then without stopping turned and started climbing the next flight of stairs.

As they left one of the boys asked the one next to him, "Is that the girl who was hanging around outside his room before? She had the long pink hair, right?"

"How did she get upstairs before if she couldn't walk?"

Nigeki grunted and rounded the bend to the last flight of stairs up to his hall. Meroune slipped a dainty hand around his shoulders to steady herself. Hadn't she? "I'm sorry to inconvenience you like this, Hitoribo-san," she murmured. "But you're just as strong as I remember…"

"Thank the heritage more than anything," he said, setting down her wheelchair to open the door to his room and carrying her inside. He sat her down on his bed and set her wheelchair behind the door. "I'm sorry you had to see that at all, though," he said, but Meroune smiled and shook her head.

"I'm glad," she said. "We're all trying to make a new future here, aren't we?"

"Yeah, I guess so. Some of us more than others…"

Meroune looked away for a second, her expression distant and troubled. "Indeed," she whispered. "A pure-hearted maiden and her gallant knight, pushed apart by the beast in his heart." As she said it she grinned, blushed and buried her face in her hands.

"You say something?" Nigeki asked.

"Ah, no!" Meroune said and turned to face him with a smile again. She got a sheet out of music and said, "Shall I begin?"

Nigeki nodded, and Meroune launched into a slow, hypnotic song. Nigeki sat on the floor entranced, seeing Meroune smiling down at him as she sang yet somehow seeing someone other than one of his classmates. Some beautiful temptress, maybe, who'd grown lonely living in isolation because she knew this was the effect she had on anyone she interacted with. Finally she'd sought companionship and chosen him, and now the only thing in the world Nigeki noticed was her…

His next door neighbors on both sides heard Meroune's singing, put down their homework and leaned over to press their ear to the wall trying to hear more and wondering what was going inside Nigeki's room.

Students passing by in the hall heard Meroune's haunting song and sneaked over to press their ears against the door to his room. Soon a wall of hypnotized students had formed outside Nigeki's door, straining to catch every lilting note Meroune sange.

"Hitoribo-san…?" she suddenly asked, stopping her song. "Do you get the feeling somebody's watching us?"

"What?" Nigeki asked, his suddenly seeming full of cobwebs. "No, but let me check to be sure." He jumped up and pulled open the blinds on his window and looked outside, but even with the senses of a predator all he could see was a faint flicker of movement from something extremely cold…but his head was too foggy to think of what that could mean.

"Nothing? Oh, never mind then," Meroune said, suddenly calm and serene. When Nigeki looked back she'd produced meal boxes out of thin air and held one out for Nigeki.

"You made dinner for us?" he asked, a little surprised but also still a little dazed. "Thank you." He pulled the top off and gazed down at a fish dish. He couldn't name it, but Meroune's smile at his gratitude made it hard to think much on the food.

* * *

After they'd eaten Meroune convinced Nigeki to do their homework together and he could only agree, having no idea how to politely tell a girl it was getting late.

But one thing that amazed him about _this_ girl was how placid and regal she was, ready to take part in anything with a smile. Even something as boring as studying. He'd hardly noticed how the time had passed before Meroune turned and said, "Oh, my." Nigeki turned and saw she was looking at the clock on his wall, and just about did a double-take when he saw it 10:15.

"It's so late," Meroune observed. "And I couldn't possibly ask you to take me all the way downstairs again. Maybe I should just stay over? Yes, that sounds like a good idea."

"What? No, I wouldn't ask you to get in trouble over something like that," Nigeki protested obliviously.

"But—!" Meroune began, but Nigeki had already set her wheelchair out in the hall, gathered her up in his arms and carried her out into the hallway before she could think of anything to say.

After they got to the bottom and Nigeki was pushing her back over to the girls' dorm, Meroune cupped her cheek in her hand and looked wistful. "Too gallant to be taken in," she murmured to herself. "Once again pushed apart by the purity of their souls and knowing their worlds are too different for them to ever be together…"

"Huh? Did you say something, Mero-chan?"

"No, nothing," Meroune answered. After another minute they were at the girls' dorm and Nigeki steered toward the aquatic species wing on the bottom floor. He grimaced as they passed a few doors, wondering if the members of Swim Club who'd beaten up Enrique and bullied Meroune lived there, and how she put up with it.

Nigeki dropped her off inside her room, which was dominated by what seemed to be a small swimming pool, with a little waterfall on one side and a small recessed area with a seat and a lamp set up on the deck beside it that looked like it was meant to serve as a desk. "This is, uh, really neat," Nigeki said, but she didn't fail to notice him shivering a little at all the open water taking most of her room. "But I should really get going now…it was nice hanging out with you, Mero-chan."

"Yes, it was. Goodnight, Hitoribo-san."

He shut the door behind and his footsteps vanished down the hall. Meroune slipped into the water, not aware that even with Nigeki gone, she wasn't alone in her room.

An hour later other girls on the floor had to kick down the door to find out why she was yelling for help. They found Meroune trapped up to her shapely shoulders in a frozen pool.

* * *

When class broke for lunch the next day, Nigeki had barely gotten his food and found an empty seat before a smiling Moka strode up to him with and had a seat on either side. "Hello there!" Moka beamed at the same time as Yukari. Nigeki wondered why he wasn't blinded by their combined smiles.

"We never see you anymore," Yukari said. "Are you **that** busy with your play?"

"Well, yeah, I kind of am," Nigeki answered. "Where's Kurumu? Doesn't she hang out with you guys?"

"She got a really bad headache all of a sudden," Yukari answered immediately, a mischievous and knowing grin on her face for just a second.

Suddenly there was a resounding crash and sound of shattering dishes, and the entire cafeteria seemed to freeze in place.

Getting up off the floor was Ren, a wet brown stain on her blouse from whatever had been on her food tray when she'd fallen down. Well, not fallen down so much as been pushed over, it looked like. Standing over her was Shingai Furabuki, looking incredibly pleased with himself.

"Oops," he said. "Better watch where you step. Must be hard getting around in those spike heels you like so much."

"Hey—" Moka started to protest and get up from her seat, but Ren just got up, collected what she could of her spilled food, gave Shingai the stinkeye and walked away from him without saying a word. She spotted Nigeki and took the seat across from him.

"Mind if I sit here?" Ren asked, paying no attention at all to the mess on her uniform. "I'd kind of like to show you some ideas I drew up for the mask. If they survived me falling down like that," she added, saying it like it was nothing out of the ordinary.

"Friend of yours from the Drama Club?" Moka asked, giving Nigeki a slightly helpless look like she wasn't sure what else to say.

"What mask?" Yukari asked, smiling curiously.

Ren smiled and got a few pieces of sketch paper out of her bad that had, as she'd feared, been bent in half when she'd fallen. She sighed but got them out and unbent them to show them to the young witch. The first was a completely featureless white surface except for the point of the wearer's nose and two softly grayed areas for eyes. "I was kinda thinking about something covering for the eyeholes so they couldn't see inside when you had it on. You'd have to be careful walking around, but I think it'd help suggest what the Phantom's about. All alone, a little afraid of himself, you know?"

"Phantom? Like Phantom of the Opera?" Yukari asked. "That's the play you guys are doing?" She chewed her lip thoughtfully for a second. "Why would you want to be the Phantom? Isn't he the villain?"

Nigeki cleared his throat while he thought an answer. "That's…really up for debate. A lot of depictions say he's more pathetic than evil."

"You're not pathetic," Yukari smirked.

"You're really not," Mizore agreed, suddenly rising up out of nowhere next to Nigeki.

Nigeki gasped and fell out of his chair, and gave Mizore a mock glare that made her smile ever so slightly in amusement at how badly she'd surprised him. "It's called _acting_ ," he said, then turned to Mizore. "How long were you there?"

"I'm _always_ there," she answered.

Mizore sat down, bumping Yukari from her spot on Nigeki's right. Yukari scrunched up her face in annoyance and brandished her wand at Mizore, who calmly formed huge ice claws around her hands. "Hey, you guys—," Moka feebly tried to protest before a barrage of tarot cards flew and smacked into Mizore, chipping at her ice claws and pelting the rest of them with chilled dust.

Nigeki sighed and started to stand to try to break it up, but as he did he felt someone hook their arm through his and whisked him out a side door. He tried to pull free but stopped when he saw it was only Ren, a coy smile on her face.

"What are you doing?" Nigeki asked as the sound of a table crashing as it was overturned echoed across the cafeteria.

"Taking the Phantom somewhere peaceful to show him the rest of these," she answered, holding up her creased sketches. Nigeki thought about going back to try to break up the fight in the cafeteria, but realized he had no idea how he'd do that without probably getting slammed through a wall himself. And even with all the confidence he'd been building up with the number of friends he'd made, getting hurt was still an awful risk.

Ren stopped outside the main school building. After she'd caught her breath, she gave Nigeki a coy but questioning smile. "I'm guessing that's normal for you?" she asked.

He shrugged, finding himself smiling a little at the question. "Not really, at least not throwing crap around the cafeteria. But the friends I've made are definitely getting to be a handful. I don't know, though. It's a good kind of chaos, gives me something to focus on besides my own problems."

As soon as he'd finished saying that Ren thrust her sketches of the Phantom's mask into his face. "Well, you've got a problem to focus on now. Which of these do you think works the best?"

Obligingly Nigeki flicked through them, pausing at a black mask that left the mouth exposed with blood-like red running across the cheeks and forehead, and another mask the color of silver with blue streaks across the cheeks and forehead, matching the blue lenses over the eyes. "What if we had different ones for different occasions? Like this one," Nigeki said, pointing to the red mask, "for if he's stalking people in the tunnels, and the silver one when he's talking to Christine face-to-face..." Ren raised an eyebrow. "You know what I mean. When they meet and he's trying to impress her. Playing up that whole 'Angel of Music' thing he'd told her he was."

Ren rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "A mask for hunting and a mask for entertaining, huh?" she smirked. Nigeki smiled back a little, his cautiousness around Ren before melting away as he found himself appreciating her interest in her craft. And she noticed his smile and her own grew a little wider, seeming glad to find someone who could respect her passion.

"Kind of surprised you didn't think of that, Ren," said a snide voice. "You have a mask on all the time." It was Shingai.

Ren made a sound of disgust in her throat. "Do you seriously have nothing better to do than harass me like this?" she demanded.

"Harass you?" Shingai laughed. "I'm saving **him,** since it looks like you're finally taking it all the way!"

She turned away, sighing in disgust. "I'm sorry, Hitoribo-san," Ren apologized. "I'll see you later, **when we won't be interrupted**." She started to walk away but Shingai lunged at her with a malicious leer on his face. He grabbed Ren by the wrist, but then Nigeki grabbed Shingai by his other arm.

"Why don't you back the hell off and leave her alone?" Nigeki warned.

" **Her**? Oh my god…" Shingai said with an amused gape on his face. Ren grunted and yanked her arm free, but as soon as she had Shingai punched Nigeki in the face, knocking him flat on his back.

"You think cuz yer the star of the show or something like that, it means you get to tell me what to do?" Shingai laughed. Nigeki heard him as if in the distance, trying to collect himself and fight down the Tear within him before it had a chance to seize his feelings of pain and get strong enough to try to take him over.

Ren shoved Shingai, who shoved right back and knocked her down too. Suddenly gray bat-like wings exploded out his back and all the hair receded into his scalp, his face changing into a skull-like, fanged mask of rage.

He was a gargoyle, and he threw himself at Nigeki with an angry shriek.

"You don't even know, do you? You're **that** stupid? You have no idea what kind of freak your little girlfriend is!" Shingai cackled, but Nigeki heard none of it because at the same time he pounded his thick, hammer-like fists against Nigeki's chest, then grabbed the young vampire by the shoulders and dragged him into the air.

" **She** 's just as much of a freak as those half-breed **monstrels**! They think they deserve to be treated like full monsters!" Shingai continued to rant.

Meanwhile Nigeki's body was aching all over and he was finding it harder to fight down the cold, clawing feeling of the Tear. He thought of changing to Bloodstone, amplifying his monster nature to the extreme so the Tear couldn't take him over. But if he did, someone like Shingai would definitely spread it around. Who knew what would happen if the rumored Kamen Rider stalking the campus turned out to be more than a rumor, regardless of what his intentions were.

Suddenly Shingai's ranting turned into a screech of pain as another winged shape flew up behind him and ripped foot-long claws up his back between his wings. He twisted to one side and smacked his attacker across the head with the edge of his wing, and dropped Nigeki while spinning away from the new combatant.

As he fell Nigeki looked up and saw that the one who'd attacked Shingai was Ren, with huge black wings and long red fingernails like Kurumu had in her true monster form…

But the instincts of a predator took over and Nigeki reached out to grab the thickest tree branch he saw. He stopped suddenly, but the branch snapped off a second later. The young vampire managed to land in an awkward crouch, and he looked around to locate the others, finding them already trading blows in the air above him.

"I tried to be nice, to just ignore it," Ren yelled. "But pieces of crap like you just **had** to try something, just **had** to get a reaction out of me. Well, you wanted a reaction! **Here. It. IS!** " Her eyes flashed and Nigeki instinctively looked away for the second it lasted, remembering all too well what a succubus's charm had almost done to him. While Shingai was frozen Ren flew by him at incredible speed and raked her nails on both hands across his chest then slammed both of her feet into his abs knocking him back into the trees.

Ren landed beside Nigeki and checked him for blood. "Are you all right?" she asked, and he waved it off. "I'm fine."

"You just fell out of the sky and landed in a tree!"

Before Nigeki was forced to answer her, another voice rang out. "Nigeki! Are you out here?!" Running up was Moka, with Yukari right behind her and Mizore seeming to glide along the ground beside them. Moka cast an appraising eye at Ren, then examined Nigeki. "Are you okay? What happened?" she asked, sounding overly concerned as usual.

"This guy tried to attack Ren, so she kicked his butt. I mostly watched," Nigeki answered her.

"What guy?" Yukari asked, then yelped in surprise and ducked as Shingai came flying back into sight, slicing through tree branches with the edges of his stony wings. He flew low, buzzing them, and Mizore fired ice daggers from her fingertips at his back as he shrank into the distance.

Shingai wheeled around and came back, and as he did Yukari raised her wand and one of her trademark washtubs fell from the sky and rebounded off his scalp with a clang. The angered gargoyle kept coming, and as he did Mizore blasted him with more ice slivers and Yukari planted her tiny feet and raised her wand again, buffeting Shingai with a barrage of cards.

But most of them just slid off Shingai's thick hide and he came barreling into them. Mizore and Yukari jumped out of the way but Ren seemed to freeze for a second and Shingai lashed out with his taloned fingers, tearing at Ren's blouse and skirt…

…and revealed a flat, masculine chest and blue boxer briefs underneath.

"What," was all Nigeki could manage to say.

"You had no clue! **No freaking clue!** " Shingai jeered as he landed, shielding himself with his wings as Yukari blasted him with cards again.

"I'm sorry you had to get involved in this," Ren said to Nigeki then she… **he** spread his wings and tackled Shingai, raking his long fingernails across Shingai's arms and chest harder than ever and sending sparks flying. But Shingai folded his wings around himself and threw them wide suddenly and forcefully, throwing Ren, Yukari and Mizore away. He jumped high and went diving at Ren.

"I'll show you what **freaks** like you deserve!" he screamed. Ren made a sound halfway between a scream and a sigh of frustration as he planted his feet and grabbed Shingai's wrists to keep the gargoyle's taloned fingers away from his bare skin.

Nigeki stepped forward. He had no fighting skill; his family had refused to train him, afraid that by doing so he might be even more dangerous if the Tear took control of him. But he still had something that made up for that when an emergency presented itself, and he opened his mouth to call it.

But he gasped in surprise when he realized Moka had grabbed his hand and pressed it against her Rosario. "You need to save your blood! I'll deal with this!" she cried out, and a spark passed between them, the Bloodstone belt appearing around Nigeki's waist for just a second. The power of the two objects, one meant to amplify a monster's power and the other to contain it, mixed. There was a flash and they were thrown apart.

When his vision cleared Nigeki saw a new Moka standing over him. The white-haired one whose stance projected unstoppable confidence. "Let me show you how a real vampire does it," she said to Nigeki, then turned and took off at a run.

As Shingai shoved Ren down and grinned as he gained the upper hand, Moka came running up behind him, then as he swept his wing at her she jumped as if she'd seen the attack coming a mile away and. She came back down smashed her heel into his shoulders between his wings.

The gargoyle let out a strangled cry, staggered forward a few steps then whipped around and grabbed at Moka, who ducked under his arm and delivered a scissor-kick to his chin that knocked him flat on his back.

With a roar Shingai jumped back up, flailing his wings at Moka, who only gave him a dismissive sneer as she ducked and jumped over them with ease like she knew what he was doing before he did. Suddenly Moka planted one foot and threw a ferocious kick that hit Shingai on the chin and lifted him off the ground. She somersaulted into the air, landed behind him and delivered a spinning kick to his back that sent him cartwheeling drunkenly a few times before he crashed into a tree trunk, toppling it over. He slid to the bottom and didn't get up again.

"You thought being a bully, a bigot made you strong," Moka said with contempt. "Maybe now you'll know your place."

* * *

Moka plucked the Rosario from Nigeki's hand and gave him a probing look for a few seconds before sealing it on her choker again and reverting to her gentler self. He went over to make sure Ren was all right, and not sure just how deeply he was comfortable checking, when a pair of students in all-black outfits came running up. Members of the disciplinary committee, or the student police as they were known to some of their detractors.

Nigeki groaned inwardly as he recognized one of them, a muscular, busty girl with a long blonde ponytail who fixed him with a suspicious glare as soon as she spotted him. He recognized her even before he saw her name badge: C. Shianus. She'd tried to question him about a Kamen Rider sighting on campus.

"Just what's going on here?" she demanded, taking in the sight of Ren with his uniform in tatters and Shingai lying unconscious against a half-splintered tree.

"That guy over there attacked him," Nigeki replied, indicating Ren, who just held up a hand still sporting foot-long fingernails and waved weakly at Shianus. "We tried to stop him and…did."

Shianus looked over at Moka, who was checking Yukari and Mizore to make sure they weren't hurt. "Is that true?" Shianus demanded, casting a wary eye over her shoulder at Nigeki.

"It's true!" Moka assured her. "We were just trying to help him out…"

Shianus motioned head toward Shingai and the other disciplinary committee member went over to secure the unconscious gargoyle. "I guess everything turned out all right then, but if something like this happens, **report it to us**. You're here to learn how to blend in and live peacefully, remember?" she said, and giving Nigeki a warning looking in particular as they gathered up Shingai and led him away.

* * *

"So…scary enough, you think?"

Meroune gave a soft yelp of mock fear as she saw Nigeki in the first of the masks Ren had made for him, a shiny black facemask that had been covered across the top with a layer of red paint that looked almost like a sheet of dried blood. Mizore smiled softly around her lollipop in approval. Kurumu camera flashed and she grinned behind it, with Moka and Yukari looking on from behind, smiling gently themselves.

"I guess that's a vote of confidence," Nigeki said, smiling as he took off the mask and handed it off to Ren, clad in a new female uniform.

"Thank you, Hitoribo-san," he said, cradling the mask in a hand that suddenly seemed oddly masculine now that Nigeki knew the truth about him, in spite of the purple nail polish. "You honestly didn't know…about me? I thought everyone could tell."

Nigeki shrugged. "Honestly? This is the first time I've ever really been allowed out of the house. I guess I'm kind of clueless about other people and some of the things they might like to do."

"Like dressing up as girls?" Ren asked, a little suspiciously.

"You didn't try anything with me," Nigeki pointed out. "I believe you thought I knew, and you weren't trying to screw with my head or anything."

Ren smiled a little at that. "Thank you," Ren said. "Shingai wasn't the first person to give me a hard time over that. He was one of the meanest, though."

"Well, I've spent my entire life having it drilled into my head that I'm not supposed to hurt anyone," Nigeki replied. "Since I've come to this school I've been thinking I should add as long as they don't want to hurt anyone else. And I don't think wearing a skirt counts as hurting anyone, even if it isn't something I'd do."

"Well, guess I'll get to work on something you will wear," Ren said and walked off.

The second her back was returned, Meroune wrapped her arms around Nigeki's and looked up at him with a soft blush on her cheeks. "Speaking of wearing, why don't you help me pick out my costume?"

Then Mizore grabbed his other arm. "Maybe after he helps me pick out something to wear for the play," she said quietly but with an undercurrent of menace.

"But you're on the stage crew," Meroune said, surprised, and it was true; Miss Bast hadn't failed to notice Mizore's stealth skills, and she'd seemed happy enough to work on the play behind the scenes. Until now.

Kurumu, always one to enjoy a little chaos, jumped forward and thrust her chest Nigeki. "Why don't you ditch them and I'll show you a couple **really** cute outfits?" she asked with a saucy grin.

"Yeah, all over the floor!" Yukari jeered.

"Who asked you, **kid**?" Kurumu snarled.

"Hey, you guys—" Moka feebly tried to protest, while Meroune and Mizore kept pulling on Nigeki's arms.

Inwardly he sighed at this happening in spite of how he'd told them he wasn't looking to date, but at the same time he couldn't help smiling a little. It was chaos, but it wasn't that different from what he'd imagined – hoped – school would be like. They fought with each other but when a real fight came along, they'd jumped in on his side.

Because he was a friend.

* * *

 **Maybe not my strongest chapter ever, but in a way I felt like it should've been included. The school's meant to promote peaceful coexistence but that constantly gets forgotten in the name of shonen action scenes. I felt like a chapter should be done about that, but about something different than what usually makes a character "different". In any case, hope it wasn't that bad. The next chapter starts the buildup to the first climax.**

* * *

 **Extra - Scrapped Ending for Chapter 6:**

 **I decided not to use this because I thought it made Nigeki look sadistic, but here it is.**

Kotsubo shut his eyes and tried to calm the storm of panicked thoughts swimming around in his head. Had he been found out, and they were keeping it from him for some reason? Or had it looked to them like he was some poor, innocent man who'd been in the wrong place at the wrong time and been discovered by a monster hunter who'd somehow gotten through the barrier? And what about that girl with the camera? What had happened to her? And what would she do with those pictures?

"Sensei? You okay?" someone asked, and Kotsubo opened his eyes to see a male student with short black hair and a concerned look on his face looking down at him.

"Who are you?" Kotsubo asked, his throat going dry.

The student looked back and forth over the rows of empty beds, and once he was sure they were alone he leaned down and whispered to Kostubo, "How about we play a game, sensei? Maybe you heard of it, it's called 'blackmail'."

"You little punk…who do you think you are?" Kotsubo snarled.

"I think I'm someone with some friends you should worry about," Nigeki answered him, his expression becoming dark. "Like one with some nice juicy photos of a teacher trying to take advantage of a student. If something happened to the guy who came to warn that teacher, then she might just go ahead and do something crazy like leak those. And if something happened to her, I can promise something a lot worse would happen to whoever was behind it. Get me, sensei? Hell, I don't know. Maybe you'll even enjoy seeing what it feels like to be totally at somebody's mercy. And I bet you'll think twice before you do it again."

Kotsubo clenched his teeth in anger.

Nigeki smiled. "Great!" As he walked out the door he called, "Get well soon!" over his shoulder.


	8. Chapter 8: Below Story

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 8 – Below Story**

From his window, Nigeki Hitoribo, teenage vampire, watched as a gaunt man walked past with an empty bag that a while before had held the students' mail.

He wanted to go down and check to see if anything had come for him, as rocky as his relationship with most of his family was. But as he walked over to the door to his dorm room and turned the knob, his skin prickled with a sensation of danger.

There was plenty of reason to be cautious with all the fights he'd already managed to get into, with how many other students didn't see any reason to be afraid of humankind and reveled in their powers. Nigeki, on the other hand, had grown up being warned constantly that there was something even darker and more monstrous in him than just being a vampire. That it could destroy everything around him if he didn't keep it under control at all times. He'd had any desire to prove his strength squashed ages ago.

But he'd had to anyway, hadn't he?

A pair of students all in black, one of them leaning a long metal staff against her shoulder, walked past then. They were from the school's disciplinary committee, and they'd been making a point to be seen these last couple of days. Nigeki supposed he didn't blame them with what he looked like as Bloodstone.

The armor, the mask the belt that was the source of his extra power, the strength that dwarfed even a monster's…he hit all the warning signs of a Kamen Rider, the absolute symbol of humanity and how they responded to monsters. With aggression, with force, with no hesitation. Nigeki had been warned about the Kamen Riders, feared them the same as any monster who valued their life.

But he wasn't one. He didn't want to kill monsters. He didn't want to kill **anyone**. He'd lived in fear of doing that his whole life. The Bloodstone was to help hold that part of him **in**.

Nigeki squinted hard and tried to head off all this downer thinking. He was at Youkai Academy to loosen up and make friends, so that would keep the Tear part of him down even more effectively.

After waiting another minute he decided he was just being paranoid and went downstairs to the entrance hall were the student mailboxes were set into the walls. Nigeki checked his mailbox and stared for a second in surprise when he saw there was indeed a thick envelope sitting inside with his family's name and address on it.

He thought about going back upstairs, but then decided to stay and read it to prove his feelings of being stalked were unfounded. Nigeki sat down out on the steps to his dorm, ripped open the end of the envelope and was about to pull out the envelope inside.

"Whatcha doing?" asked a soft female voice that reached his ears before he noticed a girl had risen silently out of the bushes next to him. Nigeki squawked in surprise and jumped back before he recognized the long lavender hair and white stick of a lollipop sticking out of her mouth, which formed into a gentle smile of amusement as his butt hit the stairs awkwardly and he slid to the next one down.

"Mizore…are you still following me around?" he asked in exasperation.

"Uh huh," she said, and then Nigeki realized his hand was empty, and the envelope he'd been about to open was in Mizore's delicate hands instead. "What's this?" Without waiting for an answer she pulled the contents free, spilling some photos onto the ground and picking them up.

Nigeki jumped for them again, but Mizore deftly twisted out of the way and he landed in the dirt. "Oh, it's a letter from your family," Mizore observed as casually as could be.

"Yes, it is. Could **I** maybe read it?" Nigeki asked, reaching out for it but again Mizore twisted to her side and he staggered past her.

"After I'm done," she stated plainly. But as she said that, another girl seemed to appear out of nowhere and snatched the photos out of her hand.

"Who's this?" asked the buxom blue-haired beauty, holding up a picture of a petite pale girl with pink streaks in her long black pigtails, and a heart-shaped birthmark under her left eye. "She your girlfriend from back home or something?" Kurumu asked, fixing Nigeki with a slightly suspicious gaze.

Nigeki fumed. "That's Laura. She's a really distant cousin who stayed with us for a while when she was visiting Japan for some kind of exchange program."

Kurumu's eyes narrowed even more suspiciously. " **How** distant?"

"That is **disgusting** ," Nigeki said and snatched the pictures away from her before she could stop him. Kurumu had said exactly the kind of thing he'd been trying to avoid by bringing up the distance between his and Laura's relation.

"Hey!" Kurumu said indignantly.

But Nigeki ignored the succubus's protest and grabbed for the pages of his letter. Once again Mizore twirled out of his way as she read the letter, barely seeming to notice Nigeki as he landed face-first on the ground again. "I didn't know your family was doing so many interesting things," she murmured, only seeming barely aware that Nigeki was even there.

Nigeki growled in annoyance but suddenly two pairs of arms grabbed him before he could try to grab his letter away from Mizore again. "Don't!" Moka admonished him. "If you don't control yourself…you-know-what will happen!"

She tightened her embrace around her fellow vampire's shoulders, and Yukari, the young witch, shut her eyes tight as she wrapped her arms around Nigeki's waist.

"Guys, I'm not that bad, honest," Nigeki replied. "I just don't think the drama with my family needs to be shared with everyone else."

"There's no drama," Mizore said, holding up the letter as proof. Nigeki sighed and took it away, and this time she let him.

He glanced over the pages, then sat down to read them all the way through. As he flipped the second one back he noticed all four girls were sitting on the steps around him, reading over his shoulder.

"What are you doing?"

"Reading your letter," Yukari answered for the group, as casually as anything. "I thought you said your older brother hated you. He sounds really nice."

"My **oldest** brother, Kai," Nigeki corrected. "My other brother Mills is the one who wrote this. For some reason he's willing to put up with me most of the time."

" '…we've been making some breakthroughs in dad's project to prove the existence of the Tears and he's taking me to investigate some sites in Makai Realm with him. But the house seems weirdly empty with you away at school,' " Kurumu read. "Some reason, huh?" she smirked and gave Nigeki a playful poke in the ribs.

"I guess," he admitted. There was some more talk about casual things, about cousin Laura calling and asking where Nigeki was when she heard he was away, about her joining her school's cheerleading squad and a new non-blood she was on. But when Nigeki flipped to the last page, the first paragraph read "Mom still isn't doing well since Mei and—" but Nigeki folded the letter up and slipped it into his jacket.

Before anyone could ask what else it had said another pair of students in black from the disciplinary committee walked by. "Is everything all right?" one of them asked. "We heard yelling and came over to see what happened."

"We were just playing around a little," Moka immediately answered and gave them a sweet, innocent smile that would've charmed a statue. "Nothing serious."

"All right, but if you see anything unusual let us know. We've already had several injured students this year." And then the two black-clad students walked on, but Nigeki swore one glanced at him suspiciously over one shoulder while going past.

"I think I'll finish this up on my own," Nigeki muttered once the two of them were out of hearing range.

"But we just got here," Kurumu protested earning her looks of barely-veiled annoyance from Moka, Yukari and Mizore.

"I'm sorry, but this is really personal, and not something I should be dragging my friends into."

"But isn't that what friends do? Help each other with their problems?" Kurumu asked.

"I appreciate it, but not with something like…this," Nigeki answered. It was bad enough he'd attacked her when his Tear side took control of him, there was no need for them to start thinking they should join his family in looking for the source of those evil creatures and proving the danger the Tears presented to the monster world. They were just kids, it was better they enjoy their time at school without worrying about the danger his family was trying to prove existed. "I'll see you later, guys," he said, then hurried back into his dorm before they tried to stop him.

Any other guy who looked at Nigeki's situation would tell him he was crazy, he knew. Any of them would kill to have an almost entirely female circle of friends, especially with a bunch of beauties like the ones Nigeki had met since coming to this school. But even though he was feeling better about keeping his inner darkness in check than he ever had, but he was only testing the waters of the real world and having real friends for the first time in his life. He just wasn't ready to get that involved with anyone. At least, not as involved as Kurumu wanted to be.

All the same, he couldn't help feeling glad about asking to be let out of the house to go to school with other monsters his own age. His experience wasn't typical at all, but maybe…maybe he was meant to be here. Maybe there was more to Nigeki Hitoribo than the darkness within.

* * *

"…w-w-well, why don't we start on today's lesson?" Miss Alphaisa half-whispered as she started the video she'd brought to class.

She probably the most unassuming person Nigeki had seen since coming to Youkai Academy. Alphaisa was shorter than most of the students, chubby with a noticeable overbite and smelling slightly sweaty in every single class, and wearing the thicket glasses Nigeki could ever remember seeing. Her brown-blonde hair was pulled far back, spiking up at the ends in a way that made Nigeki think of the crest on a triceratops's head.

Miss Alphaisa was primarily a science teacher who'd been assigned on double-duty for a class on Introduction to Human Studies after the last one had suddenly and mysteriously vacated his position At least she didn't seem like a homicidal maniac like he'd been. But then, that didn't seem too uncommon trait at this school…

His attention focused on the video as the familiar chords of the Mew Mew: Kissy Cutie theme song started to play. A scattered groan went up from around the classroom at another episode being examined, and out of the corner of his eye Nigeki saw Miss Alphaisa flinch. She had no trouble exploring the deeper meanings of this anime over the course of an entire class period, but even when one of the students had something to add, Miss Alphaisa had always thought of the exact same point but in much greater detail and would take off on the deeper meanings of snail ice cream and the significance of why a magic laser beam was yellow instead of green.

"So…as we all remember from yesterday, Miyuki and Azusa had a fight over Takayuki," Miss Alphaisa said, gleefully launching into her explanation of the animated show. "Now, Azusa felt bad about being so nasty to her friend, but before she had a chance to apologize, she ran into Ragnoroka, warrior for the Dark Empire!

"Now, we can learn a lot about a culture form the way they tell their stories…," Miss Alphaisa went on, but a snide voice interrupted her.

"Yeah, we can learn how they trick people into buying dolls for their kids!" a boy somewhere across the classroom jeered, and a few other students laughed. Miss Alphaisa froze and her eyes seemed to swell until they took up half her face. Her jaw dropped and she quivered in place, as if taken completely aback to hear this kind of reaction to something she had such strong feelings about.

Nigeki felt like he should do something to stop this, Miss Alphaisa seemed so helpless. But he was pushing it already with all the violence he found himself involved in since coming to school, wasn't he? With the Student Police out in force looking for his alter ego and everything…

Not to mention that after what he read in the latest letter from home, the part he hadn't shared with his friends…he didn't feel much like getting mixed up in violence with his classmates.

After another minute the jeering laughter settled down, and Miss Alphaisa had managed to pick up her examination of the episode again. "…as you'll remember from episode five, Takayuki thought about trying out for the soccer team but decided not to because he found his little brother was hit by a car, so instead he got an after school job to help pay for his brother's treatment. Have any of you ever had to think about making a decision like that? Between something you really wanted, and something you needed?" she asked them. Nobody answered, and she scanned the class for a minute before seeming to lock on to Nigeki. "How about you?"

"Me?" Nigeki sputtered, a chill reaching up his spine as he realized everyone in class was looking at him, Yukari and Kurumu seeming to look more at him even more deeply than the rest of the class. "I guess," he finally replied. "When I wanted to come to school instead of studying at home. Technically it might be better since I'd be around my family, but here I've made a ton of friends already. I've hardly been out of the house before, but after what I just heard's going on back home, maybe that's…"

"I think that's enough," Miss Alphaisa interrupted, wiping her suddenly sweaty brow. "And I'll talk to you after classes are over, young man."

Nigeki groaned and again laughter broke out across the classroom, this time at him.

* * *

A small cloud of steam escaped from the oven as Moka pulled the pie she'd been making out of the oven. Picking it up between her oven mitts she set it down on the pad laid out on the counter. She waited patiently for the Home Economics teacher, Mrs. Dreemurr, to come over and sample it along with the other girls' work.

"You did very well, Moka," she praised the vampiress. "Rich, not too sweet. You checked your recipe a lot, though. There maybe somebody you want to impress with this…?" Mrs. Dreemurr asked with a slightly teasing smile.

Moka blushed and avoided the teacher's eyes. Mrs. Dreemurr was an almost suspiciously warm, caring person, like the mother she could barely remember. "Maybe," Moka replied, not sure if she was more embarrassed that Mrs. Dreemurr had so easily guessed her secret or just praise from this teacher in particular. Mrs. Dreemurr was certainly one of the nicer instructors at this school Moka had met, and she'd started looking forward to this class as a result.

The teacher gave Moka a gentle pat on the shoulder as she took another taste of the pie Moka made, something she hadn't done when she'd sampled any other student's pie.

"Well, tell whoever this is for that it comes highly recommended," Mrs. Dreemurr said and moved on to the next student's culinary creation. The young vampire felt calm and appreciated. As the feeling set in it suddenly changed, and Moka looked at Mrs. Dreemur and felt herself wishing she could remember more about her mother…

* * *

When Nigeki reported to Miss Alphaisa after class, he scanned her thoroughly as he walked up, looking for anything that might be a hidden weapon like the last time a teacher had given him punishment detail. But she was carrying nothing but the case for the DVD she'd shown the class earlier, and that was a weapon he'd already learned not to fear.

"I'm here, sensei," he said. "What do I need to do? We going to have some one-on-one going over what Mew Mew means?"

"Only if you want to," she answered, giving what Nigeki thought was supposed to be an encouraging smile. When it didn't seem to work she opened the door behind her. "Why don't you step into my office?"

He did, and saw every open space of wall covered with wall scrolls of anime heroines, most of whom Nigeki didn't recognize aside from the ones Miss Alphaisa had introduced him to in class. A row of figurines of more such characters were lined up in a neat row on the side of her desk touching the wall, and she reverently set her DVD into an empty spot on a shelf filled with matching cases.

Then she took her seat at her desk and said, "You sounded like you had something really serious on your mind in class today."

"Is that something Human Studies teachers usually get involved with?" Nigeki said, sounding more surly than he'd meant to, but after what he'd heard about how things were at home he wasn't in much of a mood to discuss it. Especially not with a teacher he barely knew.

She flinched at his tone, but recovered quicker than she had in class. "No, it probably isn't," she answered, sweat forming on her brow anyway. "But…I've learned some harsh lessons in honesty and caring for others…Facing our problems instead of hiding them so they just get worse and worse. You seemed like you were facing some kind of trouble, so I thought maybe I should find out what if I could."

"It's just some family stuff," Nigeki replied.

"What kind of family stuff?" she asked. "You made it sound pretty bad."

"I shouldn't have said that," Nigeki answered her. "I just started thinking about it and my mouth kind of took off without me."

But Miss Alphaisa waved her hand and smiled at him, although this ended up just making her overbite seem even bigger. "Look, I know how it usually is on TV where the teachers are the bad guys, but I'm here to help you out if you need it," she said.

"I guess it kind of is like an anime," Nigeki murmured. Troubled loner on his own in a new place, soon finding himself the center of campus intrigue, but also finding himself the center of a loyal group of friends—

"It is, isn't it?" Alphaisa said dreamily, cutting off his line of thought. "A poor, shunned scientist finally escapes the confines of her nightmarish world with her friends into a world full of promise. She takes a job that seems demeaning, but finally lets her share the things she love with others. Obstacles crop up, but with the unconditional support of her loved ones she makes it through them all and becomes the most popular and—" She stopped as she saw the strange look Nigeki was giving her. "Right. I called you hear to talk about what's bothering you."

"Well…if you really need to know, my mother hasn't been doing well. I just got a letter from home, and she's getting even worse. She won't leave her room and she keeps banging on the walls and yelling for my youngest sisters. But they've been missing for weeks. We have no idea what happened to them," Nigeki answered.

By the time he stopped, he realized Miss Alphaisa was gaping at him in dismay. This was apparently a lot heavier than the answer she'd been expecting. She stared at Nigeki for another minute, then scuttled out from behind her desk and went to the door. "Would you wait here for a minute? I'll be right back."

* * *

Mrs. Dreemurr was on her way to the faculty housing at the end of the day, humming softly to herself. Working at a school after making it to the surface had been her ambition, even if it had been to start one of her own. But, there had been many surprises she'd discovered when she'd tried to integrate into surface society. It had been lucky, she'd discovered, to meet surface monsters before any other humans…

"TOOOOOORRRRRIIII!"

Mrs. Dreemurr turned as she heard the sharp cry of her old nickname cutting through the air. She turned toward it and saw Miss Alphaisa jogging up to her, already out of breath.

"Oh," Mrs. Dreemurr said, "It's **you**." She made no effort to disguise the disdain in her voice.

Miss Alphaisa stopped in front of her, and kneeled forward gasping for breath for a minute before she could say anything to the disdainful Mrs. Dreemurr. "What is it, **doctor**?" Mrs. Dreemurr asked, sounding eager to get away from her.

"I have…this boy…in my class," Miss Alphaisa managed to gasp out. "He's having some serious trouble at home, he said. I thought I'd come get you because you're the one who's good at this kind of thing."

"No, I'm not," Mrs. Dreemurr retorted. "Remember all those jars you made for Mr. Dreemurr? The ones to put souls inside? None of that would have happened if I'd managed to talk them out of leaving the ruins."

"Tori, please," Miss Alphaisa insisted. "I know you got a hundred reasons not to want to listen to me. But we want to make the world friendly for humans **and** monsters right, doesn't that start with the people right here?"

"Which of your 'animes' did you hear that from?" Mrs. Dreemurr said, but Miss Alphaisa just replied by giving her a helpless, puppy dog-eyed look. She sighed, then walked past Miss Alphaisa and gave her a resigned pat on the shoulder. "Where's this boy of yours?"

* * *

Nigeki almost jumped in surprise as he heard the door the office sliding open. There stood Miss Alphaisa, but in front of her was a voluptuous woman in a purple dress, who had thick curly white hair. Nigeki gulped as the sight of this woman, who he recognized as the faculty of the Cooking Club from the club drive a while back.

He felt an urge to pull his bag in front of his waist as he examined the woman back. He'd met some real beauties since coming to Youkai Academy, but even compared to them this woman was in a league of her own. Nigeki found himself starting to believe some of those things his brother Mills had told him about the appeal of older women…experienced women…

"You must be Nigeki Hitoribo. Is that right?" the woman asked, then extended her hand. "I'm Mrs. Dreemurr. Doctor…," she paused and cast a look over her shoulder, squinting at the other teacher as if questioning some decision of hers. "… **Miss** Alphaisa was wondering if you felt like you could use someone to talk to about problems at home."

"I don't really know…," Nigeki started to protest, but Mrs. Dreemurr smiled gently at him and instantly all his resistance crumbled.

"Are you sure?" she asked. "Ignoring these problems can distract from your studies."

"Well, we wouldn't want that, would we?" Nigeki said, his throat dry.

Mrs. Dreemurr's smile warmed at his acceptance. "Maybe you'd care for some tea, then?" she asked as she walked away with Nigeki right on her heels. "Or perhaps some pie?"

"I'll take anything you're offering," he said, seeming only vaguely aware of his surroundings.

* * *

Mrs. Dreemurr's room was full of old books occupying every shelf, and flowerpots full of flourishing plants occupying almost every other surface. There was a fireplace in one wall, and in it a few logs crackled pleasantly even though Nigeki was sure there were no chimneys on the building where the faculty lived. Her bed was in the corner, and on the night table was an old brown vase full of especially bright yellow flowers with the biggest blooms Nigeki had ever seen.

Next to the sink was a teapot, and to Nigeki's surprise after Mrs. Dreemurr filled it with water she picked it up and pressed one hand against the bottom, and after a second steam started to escape from the spout. "I've found this to be faster," she said with a smile.

"What are you? An ifrit or something?" Nigeki blurted out, even though he, better than most people at Youkai Academy, knew he wasn't supposed to ask other people their secrets.

But Mrs. Dreemurr just smiled at him and shook her head. "I'm just someone who's learned a thing or two. I suppose that's why Doctor… **Miss** Alphaisa came to me." She poured out two cups and sat down at the table off to side of the room, placed one before herself and then the other across from her for Nigeki. "Please, have a seat. Tell me all about this problem you're having to deal with."

Nigeki sat down, and looked over at Mrs. Dreemurr, her expression patient as she waited for him to feel comfortable enough to open up. His problems with his family were the last thing he wanted to talk to her about, but after a minute he sighed and explained himself.

"My mother and I've had a really rough relationship since I was born. She was terrified that something so ugly had grown inside of her," he said and waved his hand when Mrs. Dreemurr canted her head questioningly. "It's a long story and it's bad enough I'm telling you anything else," he explained.

"My father and my oldest brother always told me she was never really the same after I was born. She was always so distracted and would cry sometimes when she looked at herself in the mirror for too long. After a while of that she started demanding that she and my father have another baby. I think she wanted to make sure I hadn't contaminated her body or something. And after a while my father agreed, and they had twin girls.

"But a while ago my little sisters just disappeared. We have no idea what happened to them, and my father and my brothers are involved in a big research project and can't spare a lot of time to trying to find out. Honestly I think it's one of the big reasons my father finally allowed me to study away from home…so I wouldn't be around making my mother get even worse and interrupt their work."

Nigeki sighed and sucked down his entire cup of tea in one gulp. "She's not well as it is. She keeps walking around the house calling for the girls and banging on the walls trying to get them to come and answer to her. And all that because seeing me sent her around the bend in the first place. My sisters were the only thing keeping her healthy."

Mrs. Dreemurr reached across the table and gently placed her warm hand over his, and gave him a soft, reassuring smile. "Family is one of the most intense things in our lives, Nigeki. I know that too, believe me," she said. "I was in a very loving family myself, once."

"Once?" he asked. "Not anymore?"

She shook her head, her smile fading just a little. "No, not anymore. Not for a long time, really. Would you care for some more tea?"

"Well, do you think talking about it might help you, too?" Nigeki asked.

"I've made my peace with it," Mrs. Dreemurr replied. "But if you'd like to hear it, well, maybe it'll help you…"

* * *

She refilled their cups, and added a pinch of cinnamon to hers. "Would you care for some in yours?" she asked gently.

He would've said yes if she'd asked him to eat raw blowfish, but he just nodded. Mrs. Dreemurr smiled again as she dropped a pinch of spice into his cup, and he picked it up and gave it a gentle swirl before taking his first sip. It felt like his first drink after a week in the desert.

"I'm a monster, like yourself, I suppose that's obvious," she began. "But I don't come from around here…I came from an underground world of sorts, where monsters were imprisoned by a barrier created by human wizards. In the time since, it seems magic-wielding folk become as welcome among humankind as monsters themselves."

"Not to mention among monsters, too," Nigeki said. "I have a friend who's a witch…she had a hard time settling in at school."

"That I have no trouble believing. It seems that if there's anything humans and monsters have in common it's distrusting those who are different," Mrs. Dreemurr sighed. She took a long drink and studied Nigeki for a time before she went on, as if preparing herself for what she was going to say next. "But in spite of being trapped underground I used to have a very loving family," she paused, then chuckled a little. "People have told me that my husband and I were insufferable back when we were together…"

"What happened?" Nigeki blurted out.

She sighed, but answered, "Our sons died. My **former** husband blamed humans, and swore to break free and not only destroy humankind but reclaim the surface for monsters, whatever the cost. He even sacrificed human children who were unlucky enough to find their way into our world to gather the power he would need to break through the barrier and lead our people back to the surface to take revenge.

"But that's the strangest thing," she said, smiling a little. "The last human he would've needed to destroy the barrier and escape…traveled all across our world, befriending every monster he encountered. He never resorted to violence, and in the end, he destroyed the barrier and set us all free. Even my husband, who'd been so bent on destroying him."

"That's…a little hard to believe," Nigeki replied.

Mrs. Dreemurr nodded, but replied, "And yet that's the truth. This human came into our world where his death was the only thing that could set us free, and he helped us escape without once using violence against us. He was only a child…

"I tried to force him to fight," Mrs. Dreemurr went on, looking away for a second. "To save him from being killed like all the other humans before him. But he refused to raise his hand against me. Against any of us. My point is we all have problems, young one, some more severe than others. But solutions can come in the ways and times we least expect."

Nigeki nodded gently as he digested Mrs. Dreemurr's story. "What happened to the human who saved you?"

"Oh, he left to return to his own family," she replied. "We still call each other sometimes. He's trying to convince people that monsters exist and most want to coexist with humans, but he's a little young yet for most people to be willing to believe his stories about a world of monsters."

Slowly, thoughtfully, Nigeki folded his hands in front of his face. "I don't see why they'd think that. You know about the Kamen Riders, right? They're just one type of monster hunter out there. And apparently the student police are worried about one of them even being on campus after what happened to Kotsubo."

But she shook her head in reply and smiled. "For all he accomplished, Frisk is a child. Children have many wild stories to tell, most of them not based in fact. I used to be a mother myself, didn't I? As for a monster hunter being on campus, if that were true, why would he have simply beaten a monster and run away when confronted? Don't these Kamen Riders fight to the death?" She reached across the table and gently took Nigeki's hand. "Things probably aren't as dark and bleak as you're thinking. Not if we're willing look for the good in things and make them better. Frisk did."

* * *

They sat there until the teapot was empty, Mrs. Dreemurr seeming content to have said her piece and let Nigeki decide what he'd make of it. He sat at her table in silence, just letting everything he'd been thinking lately and what she'd said to him about her experiences.

Suddenly Mrs. Dreemurr cleared her throat. "Pardon me, but as a student, you probably know about this…"

Nigeki canted his head. "Know about what?"

"Well…," Mrs. Dreemurr trailed off, and blushed faintly. "The students have this really popular joke where they come up and ask if I'm single. But I'm not sure what I'm supposed to say and I usually just tell them that's adorable, then they blush and run away."

"Why do you think they're joking?" Nigeki asked, wondering about the answer to her relationship status himself. She'd said she used to be married. She wasn't anymore then, right? And why did he wish she wasn't?

"Because even girls have asked me," Mrs. Dreemurr replied. "Maybe you can tell me, what am I supposed to say to them when they ask that?"

Nigeki choked. He wanted to say she should tell them she was sorry but she was already dating a student, then mentally kicked himself for having such a ridiculous, inappropriate thought.

But he couldn't help it. Mrs. Dreemurr was one of the most beautiful women he'd ever seen, and he'd become friends with some real beauties since his family finally let him out of the house. There was something more to Mrs. Dreemurr, though…

Like she'd been through so much, but had weathered it all with a serene nature whose strength Nigeki could only try to imagine, and feel jealous for not having it himself. She was nothing like any of the other teachers he'd met at this school; she actually seemed interested in him as a person, and didn't seem like a ditz or do anything to make Nigeki wonder if she was some kind of nutjob just waiting for something to set her off.

"I…," he started to say, considering his words carefully. "I think maybe they're serious," he finally blurted out, seeming to have no sense of control around this teacher.

Mrs. Dreemurr just looked at him for a minute without an expression on her face, then smiled faintly. "I suppose it's not uncommon for children to have a crush on a teacher," she said simply.

"I believe that," Nigeki said without thinking once again. He clapped a hand over his mouth, but Mrs. Dreemurr still looked unfazed. In fact she reached across the table and lightly pinched his cheek.

"That's adorable," she said, then added, "I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself."

"I know what that's like too," she said, and pinched his other cheek, smirking a little this time. Part of Nigeki told him he should be annoyed by that, but another, louder part of his mind told him to be flattered a beautiful woman was paying attention to him, even if she was doing something as lame as pinching his cheeks.

"I should probably get going," Nigeki said. "It's getting kind of late."

"Are you sure you don't want to wait a little bit?"

He knitted his brow. "Why would I need to wait a little bit?"

"You're blushing like crazy. Your face is as red as an apple," Mrs. Dreemurr replied, smiling in gentle amusement. Nigeki got up and dashed to the mirror over the sink, and huffed in annoyance when he saw she wasn't kidding, his face really was a bright red.

"I'm going to go now," Nigeki said, completely flustered, and almost tore the door off its hinges as he hurried out.

* * *

Nigeki didn't stopped until he was sure he was out of sight of Mrs. Dreemurr's building. What an idiot he'd been! Saying all those stupid things and getting ideas…him and the rest of the students at this school, it sounded like, and she just thought they were acting cute by confessing their attraction to her.

Had all the girls he'd met at school already gone to his head, so that when another beauty came his way Nigeki thought she'd be interested in him too? Maybe even find all those stupid things he'd said without thinking charming?

He had to admit, part of him honestly thought she would. What was wrong with him? He was supposed to be getting involved at school, but not involved like **that**.

Suddenly he froze as he realized he wasn't alone; a pair of student police members in black were patrolling nearby. As they noticed him in return, however, they didn't keep walking past. Instead they walked over to the young vampire.

"Can I help you guys?" he asked, sounding more suspicious than he'd meant. Still recovering from Mrs. Dreemurr's influence, it seemed like.

"What are you doing out here by the faculty housing by yourself so late?" asked one of them.

"I…was having a conference with one of my teachers," Nigeki answered.

"Oh, is that right?" asked one of them. "And it's just coincidence that a student was found beaten not far away from here a little while ago, claiming some kind of…Kamen Rider was the one who did it to him."

Nigeki froze, but tried not to let his nervousness show. "And what does that have to do with me?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

"You sure look like a student who was seen nearby a few weird incidents where students got beaten up," one of the officers said, grinning a little. "Maybe you'd better come with us…"

Nigeki tensed his muscles. He knew better than to be getting into fights, let alone with the disciplinary committee, but after the bad news from his brother and humiliating himself in front of Mrs. Dreemurr he wasn't thinking as straight as he should've been. "I haven't done anything wrong. I'm not going anywhere."

"We weren't asking," said one, who suddenly swung a giant fist at Nigeki's stomach. Nigeki tried to dodge, his predatory instincts warning him, but the boy suddenly launched a kick that caught Nigeki hard in the stomach and knocked the wind out of him.

The second boy slammed his elbow down between Nigeki's shoulders and the young vampire went sprawling. Even through the haze of pain he quickly realized what a bad idea this had been; Nigeki had never been taught to fight. His family had always worried that if the Tear side took over it would just make him that much more dangerous. But as the second boy grabbed him by the wrists and pinned them behind his back before the first attacker rushed up and slammed his fist into Nigeki's stomach, it was clear these two knew **a lot** about fighting.

Nigeki struggled and the police member in front pounded the bottom of his fist into the side of Nigeki's head. Everything exploded with stars for a second, and the boy appeared to have been waiting for Nigeki to recover before he asked with a grin, "Ready to come with us now?"

"I haven't done anything," Nigeki insisted, not wanting to give them another reason to pound him but afraid that if they took him in that somehow they might find his belt, and that would be the end of him, he was sure.

"Then you've got nothing to worry about, do you? C'mon, let's see what Kuyou thinks of him."

"What in the hell is going on here?" someone demanded, and it took Nigeki's dazed mind a second to recognize the voice of Mrs. Dreemurr, who was glaring angrily at the scene in front of her.

"We just caught a suspect in an attack on a fellow student, ma'am," the boy pinning Nigeki answered. "We were going to take him in for questioning."

Mrs. Dreemurr's eyes smoldered angrily and the boy nearly let Nigeki go. "An attack? He was talking to me for the last **hour**. Who is he supposed to have attacked?" she demanded.

"He's been nearby when other incidents have taken place," the one pinning Nigeki answered. "It's a serious matter for campus security."

Mrs. Dreemurr's eyes narrowed angrily. "He wasn't attacking anyone, and I won't let you take him anywhere," she warned.

He shoved Nigeki to the ground and his skin started to creak. "Well, then no disrespect ma'am, but…" His height nearly doubled and his skin took on a dull sheen like stone, except for the white gleam of a confident smirk as he pounded one fist into the other with a dull boom.

But Mrs. Dreemurr look completely unimpressed by the sight of the golem towering over her. A soft coat of white fur quickly covered her skin as she assumed her true form too, her ears drooping until they hung to her shoulders and two tiny curved horns sprouted from her head. Her face had shifted into something like a goat's. A very annoyed-looking goat.

"You know what I see here?" she asked the golem. "A child who needs a spanking."

The golem sputtered in anger at the remark, and lunged at Mrs. Dreemurr. She easily jumped out of his way, then held up one hand a barrage of tiny fireballs ripped from her hand and hit him in the back, blasting him thirty feet through the air before he landed in a heap, a stunned expression on his face.

"Shit," the other policeman hissed, then seemed to explode into a ball of shaggy gray fur. He was almost as tall as his cohort, and the temperature seemed to plummet as soon as he'd completed the transformation to his true form. A yeti, looked like. He brought up a fist the size of Nigeki's whole torso and smashed him into the ground with it before he ran off to join his friend fighting Mrs. Dreemurr.

Nigeki didn't see which way he went; the young vampire was concerned only with the blinding pain from the blow he'd taken. It felt like a few ribs had been broken, and it was all Nigeki could do to gather the willpower to resist the Tear inside him as he felt it grabbed onto his pain and growing stronger.

Desperately he rolled onto his back and crawled for the cover of trees just off the path as Mrs. Dreemurr made the yeti jump back with a burst of fire from her fingertips. No one's eyes were on him, and Nigeki forced himself completely out of sight between the trees, crawling for what felt like forever before he let himself drop to the ground, and hiss one word.

" **Henshin!** "

* * *

The two young monsters circled around Mrs. Dreemurr and every few seconds she dodged as one of them took a swing at her.

"Teachers aren't exempt from the rules!" the golem grunted. "Surrender and make it easier on yourself."

"You attack, and **then** you offer peace," Mrs. Dreemurr said without emotion. "And you wonder why you have to hide from humans."

"We don't have to explain ourselves to you. A Kamen Rider's on campus, the captain's trying to avoid a panic by not announcing an emergency!"

Mrs. Dreemurr fixed him with a cold gaze. "This captain of yours sounds so noble…you almost sound like you believe what he's said."

The golem scowled. "He'll be even happier with us for catching another conspirator," He said and jumped at her, trying to grab her shoulders, but she spun out from between his hands and gave a flash of light from her fingers right in his face. The golem screamed and clutched at his eyes, staggering around until Mrs. Dreemurr stuck out her foot and tripped him.

The yeti bellowed and grabbed her suddenly by the arm, just before someone grabbed **him** by the arm and pulled him away from her.

"Brainless scum," hissed the new combatant angrily, a figure in black armor crossed with throbbing red veins and a skull-like mask. He shoved the yeti back then executed a fierce scissor-kick connecting his boot with the monster's chin, knocking him off-balance. Then, less venomously, he said, "You wanted to find me, here I am. And I won't let you attack her again. **I'm** the one with the worthless life…"

The yeti grunted. He hesitated for a second, seeming unsure of his power for a second in the face of what did indeed seem to be an actual Kamen Rider facing him down, asking for a fight. Then suddenly there was a thundering footstep and the golem came running up, and kicked Bloodstone into the air.

"Yes, you are! Miserable monster killer!" the golem yelled, but screamed in pain as Mrs. Dreemurr blasted him across the shoulder with a fireball.

"No one is worthless," she said quietly.

"I bet all you Kamen Riders and your friends tell yourselves that!" the golem roared and brought up a giant hand to slam down on Mrs. Dreemurr. "Whatever helps you justify all the lives you take!"

In the air, Bloodstone angled himself to land on his feet as he started coming back down again. He could see the yeti charging up, frost already forming on the ends of its fingers. Bloodstone landed hard and his glowing eyes focused on the yeti.

For a second, he saw only a hulking beast. Another stupid brute who thought their power compared to his. Another pathetic opponent to conquer.

But then…his mind seemed to clear. The yeti was towering over him as he angrily linked his fists together and swung them both at Bloodstone, who braced himself and raised his arms to shield himself from the powerful punch. His arms exploded with pain, but after a second it faded, and he started pushing back.

He wasn't a monster killer. He had used this power to defend himself and his friends. That's what he'd keep doing with it…no matter what happened to him.

"Stop this," Bloodstone managed to moan. "I'm not here to kill you, or anybody. I'm a monster like anyone else here."

"You're damn right you are!" the yeti roared. He grabbed Bloodstone by the wrists and swung him over his head, slamming Bloodstone hard against the ground. The yeti lifted his hands above his head and a block of ice the size of Bloodstone's body formed in them, and he smashed it down on top of Bloodstone with all of his awesome strength.

The ice shattered, but even with his armor protecting him pain washed over Bloodstone's entire body again, and he was sure he felt the rest of his ribs cracking. Transformed as he was he would heal from it quickly, but only if his opponent didn't beat him faster than he could heal.

He hated to feed the stereotype, but if he didn't defend himself, he was going to die…and perhaps for the first time, he realized he wasn't ready to do that.

" **Blood Star!** " the Bloodstone itself said as the yeti readied another ice block. The armor around his right arm flowed out suddenly, forming a shape like a whip, and the end swelled, sprouting spikes. It had become a mace. Another huge ice block came hurtling down toward him, and Bloodstone lashed out with his new weapon, shattering it to glittering pieces. With his free hand Bloodstone grabbed the yeti by the ankle and yanked him off his feet.

The yeti grabbed Bloodstone as he fell and they battered each other with their fists. Bloodstone gritted his teeth as a flurry of huge punches connected with his aching ribs, but Bloodstone was the one who had a weapon and he managed to deliver a blow to his enemy's head that dazed him for the second Bloodstone needed to jump away from him.

" **Black Morpheus Shock!** " the belt spoke, and Bloodstone clenched his teeth behind his mask as his power intensified, racing over his body and seeming to stay as long as possible over his aching ribcage. Besides the pain this was an unrefined attack; Bloodstone's powers were meant to fight and conquer, not just render his enemies helpless. He had to land it just right or nothing would happen at all.

The yeti grunted in fear as he saw what Bloodstone was doing and focused his own powers, shooting chunks of ice. They were huge, jagged bullets, nothing like the elegant icy daggers Nigeki had seen Mizore shape with her power. But the yeti was afraid; Bloodstone could smell it. He thought he was in a fight for his life.

Bloodstone was happy to prove him wrong.

He swung at the incoming ice barrage with his mace-hand and smashed them pieces, then crouched and jumped into the air and aimed himself at the yeti. As his fist connected with the shaggy monster's chest arcs of red power spread across the yeti's body. A cry of pain died in the yeti's throat as his knees buckled and he slumped to the ground with a crash.

Cautiously Bloodstone rolled the monster onto his back, but needn't have bothered; a long snarling sound came from the yeti's hairy face, and after another one came a second later Bloodstone realized it was a snore. His power had knocked his hulking enemy out.

A second later there was a crackling sound like fire, a cry of pain and the golem came flying out of the trees to land not far away, breathing but unmoving like his friend. It looked like Mrs. Dreemurr hadn't had any trouble with her opponent.

There was yet another thing about her that amazed him.

* * *

After he'd reverted to normal, Nigeki found Mrs. Dreemurr, in her human disguise once again, standing on a cliff looking out over the red ocean. In the distance, the sun was setting.

"Not to be rude or anything, but you take that for granted," she said gently without turning around.

"Sunset?"

She nodded. "I lived in caves my entire life…but monsters on the surface, humans…it seems like most of them can look at this and see nothing at all."

"It's beautiful," Nigeki admitted. "I should probably enjoy it while I can…after that fight I'm gonna get thrown out of school for sure. If I don't get lynched."

She turned to look down at him. "You didn't listen at all, did you?" she asked, but gently. "The world's not as bleak as we make it seem. What did you do wrong that you're afraid of being punished for? Are you one of those Kamen Riders who's here to kill the student body and make the world a safer place for your kind?"

"Of course not! I'm a monster too! And I didn't kill that guy! I only knocked him out!"

Mrs. Dreemurr smiled. "Then maybe you can try to have a little more faith that things will happen for the best."

"They have to know I'm Bloodstone after that, with me not killing them…but I couldn't kill them. I don't see how that's going to work out for the best."

"I didn't see how a child was going to survive travel across a world of monsters," Mrs. Dreemurr replied. "But he did, and he freed us all." She took his hand and gave him a smile Nigeki didn't quite recognize, but after a second he decided it looked…

…motherly.

* * *

 **Well, that was fun to write. And I'm sure you don't need me to tell you but Mrs. Dreemurr and Miss Alphaisa were Toriel and Alphys from Undertale. They'll be showing up again.**

 **I'm going by the pacifist ending, with the change that the monsters from the game emerged into a world that already had a sizable monster population who live in hiding from humans for obvious reasons. They're a little radical for trying to propose that they meet and coexist with humans, but there's a lot of resistance for them to overcome.**

 **As for Nigeki's American cousin, if you still remember that, all I'll say is I didn't make her up.**

 **Hope you enjoyed!**


	9. Chapter 9: Questions of Self

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 9 – Questions of Self**

He'd been a little unsure about the new recruits, but the sickening *CRACK* that split the air as one of them slammed a foot into the student two others held between them, made him smile a sadistic little smile. They'd been learning his lieutenants' lessons well after all.

He stepped closer to the rest of the club, who cowered pathetically against the side of the school building, looking like they were hoping they could disappear through the wall and escape him. But he focused his piercing gaze on them and smirked nastily. There was no escape and they knew it; the students at this school played by his rules, or they became an example.

"Please, sir," whined one girl whose cheeks were streaked with tears. "We raised everything we possibly could, but—"

She stopped as he stepped forward and stood right in front of her, towering over her and the rest of her club members. He looked every bit the captain of the Student Police that he was with a tall, athletic build. His long blond hair framed a face that was both majestic and intimidating.

"Oh, I know," he said with mock understanding. "You've always paid us what we asked for us. To be honest I've always had the least trouble with your little group. But haven't you heard? There's a Kamen Rider on campus! You've heard of them, haven't you? Of course you have…"

A moment passed as he let the weight of his declaration sink in. The club's president sobbed helplessly.

"They're one of the most ruthless and dangerous types of monster hunter. You've got to expect rates to increase when the danger does, don't you? My people are taking an awful risk on your behalf!" he stated. The he touched the tip to her chin, and raised her face to meet his eyes. "We're here to keep you safe, but we need all of you to do your part too. Otherwise…well, do **you** want to be on the receiving end of one of those kicks of theirs?"

He stared into her eyes for a second, the veiled threat in his gaze contrasting with the gentlemanly smile on his face.

"All right, Kuyou…," she gasped after a minute. "We'll get it by tomorrow. I promise."

"Excellent!" he smiled, but then turned and nodded to his subordinates who gave the poor student trapped between two other Student Police members one last hard kick in the ribs. The ones who'd been holding his arms shoved him onto the ground, one stepping on him as Kuyou collected his people and left the cowering students behind.

When they were far enough away that the students wouldn't hear them, one girl walked over to Kuyou's side. "We let them off easy…when was the last time we gave someone extra time?"

"Deshi, you disappoint me," Kuyou sighed. "One of our own confirmed the presence of a Kamen Rider on campus…lost a fight to them himself, remember?"

"Yes, I do," she answered, eyes narrowing. "Because the Kamen Rider hit him and knocked him out so that he was still alive to tell us. Since when do Kamen Riders leave monsters alive?"

"Perhaps when he's a monster himself, as we have strong reason to believe," Kuyou replied. "But we can find out for sure when he's in custody. It's all a matter of finding the right time."

The girl scowled; usually Kuyou just let them do whatever they wanted, there was none of this… _caution_. It took her a few seconds to even recognize that was the right word to describe the way he was acting, since she'd never seen anything but his overpowering confidence. And why not? The Student Police were the strongest monsters on campus, and he was the strongest of them all. Who could possibly threaten him?

As far as she was concerned, that idiot who'd said he'd run into a Kamen Rider was just taking advantage of the rumors to explain how he'd let the student he was supposed to bring in get away from him. Who ever heard ofa Kamen Rider who let his opponents escape with their lives? Deshi had heard about them since she a child, just like any monster had. Kamen Riders never let their prey get away. They probably didn't come after monster children for not brushing their teeth, but Kamen Riders killed monsters, and that was a fact.

A Kamen Rider who **was** a monster, though? That made no sense at all. They were the ultimate symbol of humankind's hatred toward monsters…

But as she was thinking that a glint of light from the top of the building they were walking by caught her eye, and as stealthily as possible she nudged Kuyou and lightly pointed upward with the staff in her hand to let him know she'd seen something.

He only smiled and glanced at the building across from the source of the glint, which was the girls' dorms. They could both see a female student in one window as she finished changing out of her school uniform.

"No need to worry about him," Kuyou said. "He already knows better than to start anything with us."

* * *

A hand slipped between the doors of the Youkai Academy student theater and slipped a sign over one knob: "REHEARSALS IN PROGRESS – KEEP OUT".

Up on the stage, the Drama Club had broken into pairs and small groups, each going over a scene. Near the center stood a tall, athletic-looking boy with dark hair and a slightly dark tinge to his skin, Enrique Sakamoto. And opposite him was a lithe girl with long, pale pink hair who somehow managed to make the wheelchair she sat in look majestic, Meroune Lorelei.

Slowly and passionately, she recited, "…Father said, 'When I'm in heaven, my child, I will send the Angel of Music to you.' Well, Father is dead, Raoul, and I have been visited by the Angel of Music."

Enrique stared at her for a second, captivated by her, before she started to give him a confused expression, and he remembered he was supposed to say something back. "No doubt of it!" he exclaimed, and Meroune actually flinched for a second at the strength of his voice. He blushed and went on, more quietly, "And now, we'll go to supper."

"No, Raoul. The Angel of Music is very strict," Meroune protested gently, her face a mask of concern that fit her part perfectly.

"I won't keep you late!" Enrique said, keeping his voice under control this time.

"No, Raoul…" Meroune replied, and their scene went on.

A few feet away sat Nigeki Hitoribo, who was waiting for them to finish up since most of his scenes were interacting with Meroune's character, the play's heroine. He was starting to wonder if that had been her real reason for trying out for the part of Christine Daae.

With Meroune, like most of the girls he'd made friends with at this school, it didn't seem to register to anyone else that this was the first time he'd ever been allowed out of the house on his own and wasn't worrying about dating yet. If it worked out it might bury the Tear part of him for a long time, but he was afraid if it **didn't** , even with the control he'd gained since coming to school, the Tear might bury **him** forever.

"Hitoribo-san? Are you ready?" Meroune asked. "It's going to be you and me next."

"I'm afraid it isn't," said Miss Bast, the club's faculty advisor, as she walked in, her thick blue hair swaying behind her. She gave Nigeki a glare of annoyance. "It seems as if as our young friend has some concerned friends of his own. **So** concerned they felt they had to ignore the sign on the door and make absolutely sure everything was all right with him."

Nigeki's stomach clenched like a fist for a second, sure it was the Student Police come to haul him in on suspicion of being the Kamen Rider stalking the campus, but his fear faded when he saw the first of them.

It was a willowy girl with a ribbon of pink hair hanging down her back. Moka Akashiya, Nigeki's fellow vampire that he hadn't seen much since they'd joined different school clubs. Her usual friendly smile was gone, replaced by a look of anxiety.

As Nigeki spotted her, though, he spotted another familiar figure behind her. She wore a purple dress and her curly white hair still looked almost fur. It was Mrs. Dreemurr, who'd stood up to members of the Student Police along with him the night before. Before she'd just seemed like a kind and motherly woman, but after seeing her casually dealing with her opponent last night, Nigeki was prepared to believe her claims that she'd been a ruler once.

Miss Bast leaned over Nigeki and quietly said, "Are you in trouble for something?"

"No," Nigeki replied out of instinct, but Miss Bast looked unconvinced.

"Look, Hitoribo-san," she said gently. "You're here to learn to be a peaceful person so you and all the kids like you can stay safe. If for some reason you're having trouble with that, you need to let your teachers know. We're here to help you."

Nigeki looked up at her, his instincts again telling him to stay silent. He was supposed to be keeping his dark half a secret, staying out of trouble and making friends at a normal school. It wasn't honest of him, but without Nigeki around causing friction with his father and older brother his family was free to find proof of the existence of the Tears they could present to the leaders of the monster world. Soon, hopefully, something could be done about them.

Not only that, but he'd managed to do some good with the people he'd met here, the friends he'd made. Kurumu wasn't hypnotizing boys anymore, Meroune had been able to get away from the bullying mermaids, and Mizore, well, she was out of trouble too. Yukari, Ren…

If Nigeki admitted to anything, he didn't see how he couldn't admit to it all. And if he did, then he'd be thrown out of Youkai Academy for sure. He worried that all the progress his friends had made in confronting their demons might slip away. If he was sent back to his family, their work on finding proof of the Tears might slow down again. And, he wondered for a terrible second, what if his family wouldn't take him back?

Kai had said again and again they should've gotten rid of him the minute their mother first laid eyes on his black-coated form. One night when Kai was especially angry he promised he'd toast Nigeki being kicked out of the family on the day of his wedding. And with how close Kai and his fiancée seemed to be…

"Hey!" Miss Bast interrupted him. "You don't have to say anything now, but at least think about it, okay?"

"Okay, okay."

"All right. Now go see what your friends need. We have a production to put on, don't forget."

He gave her a questioning look. "You sound really serious about it."

"Everyone's coming to see you put on a show, you **better** take it seriously," Miss Bast answered, and Nigeki had the feeling the grim expression on her face wasn't meant to be as silly as it looked.

"I understand, Bast-sensei," Nigeki said, then slipped away from her to see what Mrs. Dreemurr and Moka needed, although he was sure he already knew. Moka looked up at Mrs. Dreemurr a little nervously, but the teacher nodded slowly and she nodded back. "Is there…anything I can do for you, Dreemurr-sensei?" Nigeki asked.

"Came to see if you're…all right, after yesterday," she answered, giving him a neutral expression, but as he met her eyes Nigeki noticed a glint he thought must've been concern for him. It had been a long time since he'd seen it at home. "Looks like I wasn't the only one," she went on.

Nigeki sighed. "For now, at least."

Moka's jaw dropped in alarm. "What are you talking about?"

"It's…I…I got into a fight with this guy from the Security Committee yesterday," Nigeki explained in a lowered voice. "I got smacked really hard and had to change. I got out of sight, but I'm pretty sure he knows it was me. Don't see how he couldn't. I'm sure they're thinking of some kind of plan to catch me, and I'm trying to think about what I should do...maybe I should leave school before they try to get me."

"No!" Moka exclaimed, and students all around the theater turned and looked her way. She blushed a little and tried to wave it off. "Sorry everybody…"

" _This weakling calls himself a vampire?_ " Moka flinched in surprise as she heard the voice of her stronger inner self speak in a voice only she heard.

Moka was about to think of a sharp reply when her thoughts were interrupted. "Let me ask you again, why should you do anything?" Mrs. Dreemurr asked, and both students looked up at her in confusion. "What have you done wrong that someone's going to punish you for?"

"I don't think it's going to matter what I've actually done," Nigeki muttered. "When I change I look like a monster-killer, right in the middle of a bunch of monster kids. If I was them I wouldn't wait to pull the trigger either."

Moka tried to think of something reassuring to say, but Mrs. Dreemurr already had. "Has this monster-killer actually killed any monsters? Giving up a bit too soon, wouldn't you say?"

"Dreemurr-sensei, I appreciate you trying to help me, but you're not from around here. You don't know about all the kinds of monster hunters there are, and how serious it is for us if one shows up around here."

"Perhaps it's time to change that, then," Mrs. Dreemurr replied calmly. Gently she cupped Nigeki's cheeks in her arm, soft, enticing hands. For a second he couldn't think of anything else. "One person ended a long period of confinement and fear. It took determination, but he did it. That could happen again, somewhere else, seems to me, if someone else had…well, **determination**. Think about it, young one."

Mrs. Dreemurr held his face in her hands for another second then gently stepped away. She walked out of the theater, looking over her shoulder back at Nigeki for a second with a slightly questioning look before she turned away and walked through the door.

Moka watched her leave too, then after a second realized she was there to tell Nigeki something important too. "Hi," she said gently and took Nigeki by the hand, giving him a warm, slightly embarrassed smile. "Can you meet me at my club after your club ends? I really need some help…"

* * *

Moka was waiting out on the path in front of the building where the Newspaper Club met, pacing back and forth. She looked up uncertainly as another student came into sight, then her face brightened when she recognized him.

Though her face fell again when she saw he wasn't alone. Nigeki was there, but next to him was Meroune Lorelei in her wheelchair, a pleasant smile on her face. A faint chill in the air as the two of them came closer hinted they weren't the only ones.

"Thanks for coming," Moka said and took Nigeki's hand between hers. She sighed softly and he swore her cheeks turned pink for a second. "I was kind of hoping you'd come yourself, though," she said to Nigeki in a lowered voice.

"That's what I tried to tell her," Nigeki replied. "But Mero-chan asked if I could walk her home after the club let out. Said all the Student Police around are making her nervous. And when she heard I needed to come help out a friend, she said she wanted to help too."

Meroune smiled and slipped her arms around Nigeki's other arm. "Yes, exactly!" she exclaimed. "It's so tragic, all this trouble at an ordinary school, but perhaps the calamity will draw them together…"

Moka stared down at her for a second, then whispered in Nigeki's ear, "What's she talking about?"

"I think she wants school to be like a romance novel or something," Nigeki whispered.

A second passed as Moka digested what he'd told her. "A romance novel with her…and **you**?"

Nigeki shrugged helplessly.

"Okay, let's just go in," Moka said. "And try not to judge him **too** hard, all right?"

"Judge him for what?" Nigeki asked.

How had Nigeki gotten a reputation as someone willing to plunge into danger? He was supposed to be at a regular school making friends and learning to **stay out** of trouble. But not only was Nigeki pretty sure Mrs. Dreemurr had been trying to hint he should be willing to make more of what he had with the Bloodstone, Moka had said her club president was in some kind of trouble and come to Nigeki in hope of dealing with it.

There were only two blood bags hidden in the bottom of his closet now. He got into one more fight, used his Bloodstone powers for anything big or healed from a serious injury again, it would all be gone. And to have any hope of getting more he'd have to tell his family that he was out, and why he'd run out so soon…

But then, that was what meant having friends meant sometimes, didn't it? Being there to help if they needed it, and making friends was what he was at school to do, wasn't it?

Moka opened the door, then jumped with a squeal of surprise as someone came flying out and crashed into Nigeki and they both landed in a heap. For just a second Nigeki could feel the Tear flaring up but he fought it down and shoved the other student off of him.

It was a dark-haired boy wearing a silver pendant shaped like a wolf's head, but Nigeki's attention was drawn more to the dark shoe print ground into the back of his head. He didn't have to guess where that had come from, with an extremely annoyed-looking Kurumu standing in the doorway, arms crossed under her chest, an annoyed Yukari by her side. A second later a metal wash tub fell from the sky, and Yukari smirked as it landed on the boy's head with a clang.

Moka rushed forward and looked down at the young witch protectively. "He wasn't looking at you this time, was he, Yukari?" she asked anxiously.

"No, but he still had it coming!" Yukari answered Moka, glaring at the boy she'd clobbered with a look of disgust on her face.

Kurumu's face broke into a blinding smile as she saw Nigeki standing nearby, then **flowed** around Moka and Yukari, then the guy still lying flat on the ground, and twined her supple arms around Nigeki's body and jammed her soft breasts up against his side. "Hi!" she grinned even wider if it was possible. "You maybe thought any about, you know," Kurumu started to ask, then leered at him, " **girls**?"

"Your friend is so pretty Hitoribo-san," Meroune said suddenly, "Have you known each other long?"

Kurumu stopped and stared at Meroune, who just smiled up at her pleasantly. "Who's **she**?" the succubus nearly demanded.

Meroune smiled wide and introduced herself. "I'm Meroune Lorelei! Hitoribo-san and I are the lead couple in the Drama Club's play."

"Lead… **couple**?!" Kurumu asked, her face turning purple with rage.

"It's just a play!" Nigeki pleaded, but Kurumu looked as if she was about to explode. Meroune just kept shining the friendliest smile ever at the two of them, seeming completely unaware of Kurumu's anger at what she'd said.

"Ah!" The boy who'd been lying on the ground looking out cold all that time suddenly stood up and knocked Nigeki into Kurumu, and both of them went down. He yelped in alarm as his face landed in her chest, but Kurumu squealed in delight and wrapped her arms and legs around the young vampire's body.

The boy knelt down on one knee to look Meroune in the eyes, glistening red roses seeming to burst out of the air around him. "Welcome, lovely lady, to the School Newspaper Club. Meroune Lorelei, wasn't it? A beautiful name for a beautiful girl, musical almost…"

She smiled at him pleasantly and replied, "Why thank you! But I believe you have me at a disadvantage, sir."

"Ginei Morioka, club president at your service! Why don't you come in and you can tell me all about yourself?" he offered, but his eyes slowly descended from her face to the packed front of her blouse. A second later another brass wash tub fell from the sky and knocked him down again.

"Oh dear," Meroune said placidly. "Maybe we should wait until you're conscious again."

"I won't let you sully another pure maiden with your filthy attentions!" Yukari yelled as she charged up behind Ginei, brandishing her wand, a flustered Moka following behind her as the chaos continued to unfold.

"Kurumu, let go!" Nigeki howled helplessly, finally pulling his face out of her chest enough to get an understandable word out. She squirmed and wriggled against the ground until his face was pressed back into her sweater again.

"Never!" the succubus squealed happily. "You'll never rise again…wait, what the hell?" she demanded as someone suddenly appeared looming over them, grabbed Nigeki by the legs and tried to pull him away from Kurumu. It was Mizore Shirayuki, and claws of ice were forming around her hands as she got ready to fight off the competition.

Kurumu scowled and pulled on his other arm, though. "Hey, let go!" she yelled. "I saw him before you!"

"I saw him before either of you…" Moka lightly protested.

"Yeah, because you ran him over with your bike!" Kurumu snapped a second before she was flattened by a falling wash tub. Suddenly meeting no resistance, Mizore gasped in surprise as she fell onto the grass and for the second time in a minute, Nigeki fell on top of a beautiful girl, who looked up at him with pink on her cheeks and a soft smile on her lips. Next to them Meroune looked on, a strangely approving look on her face.

This was what his life had become.

* * *

Eventually they gathered inside the Newspaper Club's meeting room. Nigeki couldn't help noticing how Ginei asked Meroune to sit next to him, but she only smiled politely and seemed to hardly notice the glittering smiles he kept sending her way. After a minute he seemed to give up, his shoulders slumped and he addressed the group.

"Everyone, what I'm going to say is probably going to come as a shock, but I've been told by the Security Committee that they have very compelling evidence of a Kamen Rider being on campus," Ginei said solemnly.

They made a dedicated attempt to look surprised. Nigeki let his jaw drop. Yukari squealed in fright and grabbed him by the arm and buried her face in the sleeve of his jacket. Kurumu gasped in surprise, then saw what Yukari was doing, clenched her teeth in annoyance and grabbed Nigeki even harder by his other arm. Meroune covered her mouth in surprise, and Moka gasped in shock and took a step back, then saw Nigeki being pulled back and forth and tried to break it up. Mizore just stood off to one side completely silent as usual but ice claws glistening on her hands just in case.

"That's bad news," Nigeki said, trying to pull away from the two girls without any luck. "But if they haven't announced it to the school, they must have some reason just for telling you, Morioka-san." A chill ran up his spine as he wondered what the answer was. Moka hadn't told this guy, had she? He wasn't going to turn Nigeki in or something like that, was he…?

Ginei sat down hard in his chair. "They want to know if I heard anything about it," he replied. "President of the Newspaper Club, I hear about things, right? I think they were just on their way to somewhere else and came by to mock me, though."  
"Why would they do that?" Kurumu asked, pausing in her tug of war over Nigeki. With her attention elsewhere for a second the vampire pulled his arms free from the girl on each side, but Yukari immediately threw her arms around him and pinned his arms to his sides. He sighed in defeat.

"Well, Kurono-san…didn't you ever wonder why I was the only club member when the rest of you joined?" Ginei asked.

"Not really," she shrugged. "I figured everybody else graduated or something."

"Or got sick of you trying to take pictures of them coming out of the shower," Yukari added with an evil grin. Nigeki looked back at her, gaping at such a remark, but then looked over at Kurumu and Moka who just sighed and nodded slowly as if this was something they'd gotten used to a long time ago.

"No," Ginei said gravely, and immediately everyone was staring at him, unsure of what to expect. "The other club members left for their safety."

Silence fell over the room. Kurumu was the one who broke it. "Gin…you're kidding, right?"

He shook his head. "The old Newspaper Club found out about the Security Committee and how they make it a habit to shake down school clubs for protection money. They decided to try to expose the Security Committee's practices, but that's the problem of being in the business of spreading news, I guess. The Security Committee heard about it, and taught the Newspaper Club who they were dealing with. The rest of the students were too afraid to do anything, and after it was over most of the club members, well…they took the point. And the head of the Security Committee said if they ever had trouble with us again, they'd be back, and they'd hit harder next time."

Nigeki looked him in the eye from across the meeting table. "But if you're telling us all this now, you even called in from people outside your club…you must have a reason," he said, fear clenching at his stomach. He looked over at Moka who was nervously chewing her lip and looked away when she saw him looking her way.

"Indeed I do," Ginei sighed. "I was worried they found out as much as they did last time. That they thought I knew something about the Kamen Rider they were so worried about. Well, I don't, and they're not worried about him. But it seems I know someone who did know something."

Ginei reached inside his jacket and dropped a pile of photos on the table. They showed the school swimming pool, half-emptied by the power Bloodstone had unleashed in his fight with the vicious mermaids of the school's Swim Club. The first was just of the pool itself right after he'd scattered them all with his final attack, but the second showed a student lying on the deck next to a mermaid with a long pink tail, Meroune. And the third photo showed a close zoom of the student's face: bruised and battered, but there could be no doubt it was Nigeki Hitoribo.

"…and what are you going to do with this?" Nigeki asked, speaking for everyone else in the room.

"That depends," Ginei replied. "A Kamen Rider on campus is a serious problem. And I've been punched enough times by the Security Committee already that I don't really want them thinking I've been hiding one from them."

A minute passed, and Ginei added. "But they're a bunch of crazy thugs, and I don't think I could really hand somebody over to them if he wasn't dangerous."

"He isn't!" Kurumu yelled.

"There was that one time…," Nigeki gently reminded her.

"That wasn't you!" she retorted before he had the chance to continue that thought. "That was something else…It wasn't your fault, it was mine," Kurumu went on, quietly, regretfully.

Moka spoke up. "It's like I told you, Gin…he doesn't want to kill anybody. He was helping people out when he got into those fights."

For a long moment Ginei studied Nigeki, seeming to be trying to find anything giving away the look of a killer, or someone who'd have the audacity to strike a dramatic pose as a monster exploded to pieces behind him. "I don't know," he finally said. "If you were here to kill, why haven't you? And why would you have risked exposure if you weren't going to kill? And why would you only go after students…?"

"HEY! What's this?!" Yukari suddenly cried out, holding up the photos of the pool after the fight with the Swim Club. In her other hand were a stack of pictures that had obviously been taken **before** the fight, as they were of the members of the Swim Club standing out on the path wearing bikinis and showing themselves off to prospective members.

Ginei's jaw dropped as he realized he'd left those in there, while Kurumu and Yukari, white with rage, started walking across the sides of the table toward him. "Hey! I was just…recording those for posterity! Besides! They were the ones doing it, I was just…ummm…" he stammered, fumbling for a response. He didn't get any further as a pair of ice daggers whizzed through the air and pinned the shoulders of his jacket to the wall courtesy of Mizore. A second later a wash tub slammed into his face with a clang that even made Meroune wince in pain.

* * *

Quickly Moka made her way to Nigeki's side as the other members of the Newspaper Club meted out some justice on the club president. She gently hurried him outside, and Nigeki pushed Meroune in front of him. Mizore had just disappeared into thin air somewhere along the way as she usually did, but he was sure the yuki onna wasn't far away.

"I'm sorry I told someone," Moka whispered to Nigeki. "But he had those pictures, and after the Student Police came by he started to think it might be a good idea to tell them. I had to show him you weren't a **real** Kamen Rider…"

"You have to wonder, though," Meroune said thoughtfully, serenely, "what **is** a real Kamen Rider?"

"Mero-chan, do you know what you're asking?" Nigeki asked, a little disgusted by her question.

She smiled faintly up at him. "Because I'm from the ocean, I haven't heard about all the monster-killers out there? A Kamen Rider's a human who changes into a form that makes them as powerful as a monster, then kills monsters," she replied, demonstrating her knowledge. "But have you ever read about who most of those monsters were, Hitoribo-san? They weren't all innocent victims."

"Of course not," Nigeki replied and turned toward the girls dorm. "But after all that, do you really think a Kamen Rider would look twice at a place like this before deciding we were a menace and finding a way to wipe us out?"

"I don't know, Hitoribo-san," she answered him calmly. "I've never met a Kamen Rider. I've only met someone with a lot in common with them, but I don't think he'd slaughter a group of humans because he was worried about what they **might** do."

* * *

After he'd dropped off Meroune at the aquatic wing of the girls' dorm, Moka put a hand on Nigeki's hand before he could head back to his own room. "Hey," she said quietly. "I probably shouldn't have looked, but when you got that letter from your family it said your mother isn't doing that well…isn't that right? That's the part you didn't want us seeing."

Nigeki sighed at being reminded of that, but nodded. "Yes, my mother's not doing well. I've never seen her when she was, though. When I was born, well, apparently I already looked like a Tear and it scarred her pretty badly. But apparently she's gotten worse while I was gone…I was kind of hoping she might get better without me around for a while."

"Well, if it helps any, my family's…not so great either," Moka said as reassuringly as she could. "And I don't really remember my mom at all?"

"Really?" Nigeki asked, surprised. "I…um, I'm not really sure to put this. I just kind of got this feeling you were a lot like your mom."

"Maybe," Moka replied with a limp shrug. "I… **we** never really met her. My sisters say she was weak, she believed in everyone being able to live peacefully. All kinds of monsters **and** humans."

"Even…," Nigeki started to say, then lowered his voice. "Even KR's?"

Moka nodded a little and smiled. "Even them."

He nodded and smiled a little back. "She sounds pretty amazing. I don't know if I could I believe in that."

Moka's expression turned annoyed for a second and the red jewel in the center of her Rosario flared for a second, and Nigeki got the feeling she was reacting to something only she could hear, but after a second the light dimmed and she looked slightly disappointed. "You don't?" she asked.

He shook his head sadly. "I can't even keep from getting into fights at high school. And you saw how bad it would be if I lost control. I almost killed Kurumu when that happened."

"Maybe it's better that way," Moka gently suggested.

Nigeki gasped in disgust. "How could it possibly be better that way?"

Carefully she reached out and touched him on the arm. "You don't want to avoid bad things for the rest of your life, right? I mean, you didn't fight because that bad part of you took over, right? You did it because you were in trouble, or you were helping someone else who was in trouble. That's pretty brave for someone who came here trying to do everything he possibly could just to avoid problems," she said as reassuringly as she could.

"Moka, I appreciate it, but I'm positive the Security Committee has it out for me and I don't know why they haven't tried anything yet. I need to figure out what I'm going to do. Goodnight."

"Hey!" she protested as Nigeki pulled away. "We're your friends, all right? Let us know what you decide to do, okay? We want to help…"

"I will," Nigeki added, looked into her nervous face, and added. "I promise."

Moka watched him go, then went up to her own room in silence. As soon as she shut the door she could hear the voice of her inner self speaking again, the jewel of her Rosario lighting up almost derisively.

"Power like his and he's happy to use it against vermin, but when a seasoned enemy appears he wants to run away. Good riddance."

Outer Moka just bit her lip and slid over to her desk to start her homework, worrying just what Nigeki might do next.

* * *

For an hour Nigeki sat at his desk trying to study, but he kept looking over his shoulder at his tiny closet, his bags sitting out in front of its doors.

Ever since he'd said goodbye to his friends for the night he'd been trying to convince himself everything was all right. If the Security Committee did know about him and Bloodstone, like he was afraid, why hadn't they made a move against him? He'd been fighting monsters all over school, and even with them, and doing it with the looks and strength of a hated breed of monster-killer.

After a few more minutes of sitting in silence Nigeki got up and started packing. This had been a stupid idea since the beginning. He was supposed to be blending in, avoiding conflict. Instead he'd just been getting into fights with every lowlife he ran into. Putting the really good friends he'd made at risk just thanks to them knowing someone sneaking around campus in a flashy suit of armor and a magic belt.

He zipped the bags shut, left his room and closed the door behind him but didn't bother to lock it. It didn't matter, he wasn't coming back.

Things had just gotten too far out of control with all his battles as Bloodstone, and Nigeki couldn't let his presence put the friends he'd made at risk from somebody who might do something terrible to them, just because they'd been friends with someone who looked like a Kamen Rider.

His friends would probably worry where he'd gone so suddenly, but Nigeki sucked in a breath and pushed the thought to the back of his mind. He'd call them and tell them what he'd done when he was at a safe distance. Safe enough distance that the Security Committee wouldn't think it was worth tracking him down. And safe enough distance that he couldn't chicken out and change his mind about what he was about to do.

Nigeki stopped by the tunnel that marked the main way in and out of the Youkai Academy campus. Nearby stood a ragged old scarecrow with a jack o' lantern for a head that somehow hadn't rotted at all since he'd come to school.

This was where students were dropped off by bus at the beginning of the term, a bus that seemed to run between Youkai Academy and everywhere in Japan where monster families lived. Nigeki hoped it would be willing to take him off campus even though it was the middle of the term. He had a good reason…didn't he?

He spotted a schedule hanging from the scarecrow and felt relief flow over him. It seemed like luck was on his side after all.

But as he was looking it over a shadow fell over him. Nigeki looked up and saw three members of the Security Committee standing near him, the one in the middle being a tall, regal-looking boy with long blond hair and a superior smile on his face. "It's past curfew," he informed Nigeki.

"My mother's sick. I'm going home to visit her."

"And you'll have cleared that with the faculty, of course," the boy replied.

"Of course."

"No, you wouldn't, because we'd have been informed if a student was leaving campus in the middle of the term," the boy replied, his expression turning dark. "Nigeki Hitoribo, isn't it?"

"What if it is?" Nigeki replied, steeling himself, drawing on his predatory instincts to show no fear when confronted.

"If it is, you're going to have to come with me."

"No," Nigeki said. "I'm getting off this campus and I'll never be a problem for you again."

One of the other committee members snapped, "Just let us at him already, Kuyou! He looks like the biggest pussy I ever saw!"

The tall boy gave him a withering glare and he sank back, put in his place by his superior, but Kuyou spoke again, "He's right, though, Hitoribo- **san**. You don't seem to realize just how serious the charges against you are. And if you aren't prepared to come quietly, we'll take you by force." The other committee members lunged out and grabbed Nigeki by the arms and started dragging him back toward campus.

Nigeki tried to fight back and pull himself free, but one of them grabbed a water bottle from his pocket and squeezed it, spraying water all over Nigeki from the cap. He screamed as jagged electric arcs raced all over his body. "Going to try that again, kid?" one of them asked.

Nigeki panted for breath, trying to fake being in worse shape than he was, even if that **was** still pretty bad. He was sure if he let himself be dragged in he'd have to fight the entire committee and he didn't hold any hope of that even as Bloodstone. He had to fight back now while the odds were still light if he was going to have any chance of getting away.

" **Henshin!** " Nigeki yelled. Within seconds his mask closed over his face and his armor was hardening around him. Awesome strength surged through his body as the transformation completed, and with a roar Bloodstone threw his arms wide and the committee members still trying to hold him went flying.

One of them desperately sprayed him with the water bottle, but only tiny electric arcs ripped across the area where it hit him this time, and Bloodstone growled before throwing a kick that launched the poor boy over Kuyou's head. Kuyou smirked at Bloodstone in spite of this display of power. "Exactly as I thought."

Bloodstone stomped over to Kuyou and raised his fists high. Deep inside his mind he could hear Nigeki's voice telling him to retreat, that winning this fight would only make things worse for them. But he'd transformed in desperation, and that emotion only fueled Bloodstone's desire to fight, to prove himself the ultimate. And he swung his fists down at Kuyou intending to wipe that smirk off his face…

Only for Kuyou to lift his hands and catch Bloodstone's arms before they touched him, blistering flames suddenly erupting in his palms. Bloodstone roared as he could feel the heat searing through his armor, leaving it charred and black when Bloodstone pulled away. In the blink of an eye Kuyou was on top of him again, battering Bloodstone against the head with a whirling kick.

Bloodstone would've recovered quickly, but Kuyou hadn't gotten his position through intimidation alone. Before he even landed from his previous attack he delivered a ferocious chop to the base of Bloodstone's neck where the armor was thinnest and then released a blast of fire that exploded and blew Bloodstone ten feet away before he hit the ground.

Bloodstone jumped up, gathering his power as he realized just how formidable his enemy was. " **Concussion Blow!** " cried out his belt as he turned, jumped at Kuyou fist-first and glowing with power. For a second the committee captain gaped in alarm as Bloodstone's fist slammed into his chest. The energy exploded out from Bloodstone's punch into a storm of red and black globs the size of softballs but as hard as steel, pelting Kuyou and pushing him away. He gritted his teeth in rage as one caught him right between the eyes and sent him staggering a few feet away.

Then Bloodstone suddenly darted away, running across the grounds at blinding speed as he circled Kuyou, looking for an opening. He charged Kuyou from the side, moving so fast and with so much force his footprints dug half a foot into the ground with every step. Bloodstone swung his arm at Kuyou, the blade on his elbow extending to its full length and flashing out toward Kuyou's side.

But at the last second Kuyou whirled away, the blade only slicing through the edge of his uniform, and as he turned fireballs formed in his hands which looked more like furry paws before he released them and blew Bloodstone away. The savage vampire skidded along the ground and came to the edge of the cliff, teetered for a second, then toppled over.

His hands shot out and grabbed for something to hold onto and his fingers dug a shallow handhold in the rock. It was settling into Bloodstone's frenzied mind that even he was outmatched: his power was great, but his family had made sure he never learned how to be an effective fighter on his own merit, to make the Tear part of him less of a danger if it managed to take control. Kuyou, on the other hand, was clearly an extremely powerful monster **and** one who had been fighting for a long time. If this went on, Bloodstone would be in trouble…

He heaved himself onto the ground and got to his feet, looking around for Kuyou to make sure he wasn't taken by surprise again. But Kuyou was standing only a few feet away, smirking and looking like he'd been waiting for Bloodstone to show himself before finishing him off.

"Goodbye, Kame Rider," Kuyou said, then his entire body erupted in flames. Within seconds the fire started to reshape itself and Kuyou had become a large fox-like creature with multiple thick tails, flame still dancing everywhere on his body. He opened his mouth and a burning tornado whirled from it, engulfing Bloodstone and carrying him into the air.

Bloodstone seemed to fall forever before he slammed into the ground again, and he could hear rock cracking around him for a second before everything suddenly seemed to go silent.

Then everything went dark.

He might've taken some comfort in knowing someone had seen the fight, and snuck away to get help…


	10. Chapter 10: At the Heart of the Web

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 10 – At the Heart of the Web**

Bloodstone landed in a tangled heap in the back of a cell in the school dungeon. The two bruised members of the Security Committee laughed as they slammed the cell door shut behind him and rattled the key in the lock just to mock him, not that he could hear it anymore. Kuyou's attacks had knocked him out cold, and the dark armor covering his body was already starting to melt off.

"So what's next, Captain?" one of them asked with a leer. "Gonna put him in a glass case as a warning or something?"

"Oh, I'll have to think about that a bit," Kuyou smirked. "This isn't just some student with a big mouth, after all."

"Sir?"

He turned and looked over his shoulder at another member of the group, a tall, busty girl with a long blonde ponytail. The name plate on her dark uniform read C. Shianus. She looked through the bars at Nigeki's battered body, his uniform scorched and torn from Kuyou's devastating attacks on him. His mask had already vanished, and the expression left on his face was one of fear and pain.

"What is it, Centorea?" Kuyou asked, smirking a little more. "We've caught a dangerous monster hunter before any serious harm could be done. You should be proud, you suspected him from the beginning, didn't you?"

"That's just it, sir," Centorea replied. "Why would a vampire be a monster hunter? Why would he risk revealing himself to protect students if he was here to kill monsters? You yourself were happy to deal with Kotsubo, and if the victim's to be believed, he," she pointed into the cell at Nigeki, "was the one who stopped him from assaulting her."

"You think so highly of your station yet you see so little," Kuyou said. "He was probably taking a few students into his confidence, pretending to be one of them to help them in some plan to destroy the school, if not our world completely. In a way, it's brilliant. How else was one of these Riders supposed to get past the barrier, other than to have a monster do it for them?"

But she almost didn't hear him, staring through the bars as Bloodstone's armor finished sloughing off him leaving nothing but a battered teen vampire lying motionless in the back of one of their cells. Could he really have been planning to destroy the school?

"Come along, Centorea," Kuyou interrupted her thoughts. "We've an announcement to make. After all, we've just saved the entire school from a Kamen Rider! This is a day that will go down in history!" He laughed and the others laughed along with him. Centorea cast one last look back at Nigeki, then hurried after them, a look of confusion on her face.

But Kuyou and his underlings had no way of knowing that Bloodstone had lost consciousness without making sure he couldn't dream. And without him able to resist, the darkness inside of him started to grow.

"All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust…All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust…"

* * *

Miss Bast sighed as she typed out a short report on Nigeki Hitoribo; how he was doing in his activity, in his classes, and, candidly, how he'd been doing in the fights with other monsters at this school he'd been getting into.

She had followed, carefully keeping an eye on him and making sure not to be seen. But every instinct of hers had told her to ignore the Headmaster's instructions, to get involved and let the kid off the hook of having to deal with every thug that came his way on his own. However powerful he had the potential to be and however important this upcoming threat the Headmaster was still keeping quiet about might be either.

That wasn't how it should be. The biggest problem kids his age were supposed to have was not getting caught sneaking out for dates, forget fighting for their lives.

But she'd agreed to do this because the Headmaster had made it sound important. Dropped out of her new band, traveled across the world and taken this job because he'd made it sound like a huge deal, and she knew from her own experiences she couldn't ignore it.

She knew better than most how even if a peaceful monster tried to just keep their head down and avoid trouble, there always seemed to be some new monolithic threat waiting for the one before it to fall, so it could rise up and try to destroy everything like the one before it had tried to do, even if its reasons for trying might be a little different. If some new global threat like that was coming, then yes, they needed to be prepared.

But since when did that mean they needed to have kids on the front lines?

Suddenly there was a loud banging at her door, making Miss Bast jump. She almost landed on all fours in feline battle-readiness before realizing this probably wasn't an attack; why would someone bent on attacking her show decent manners? She opened the door and standing out in the hall was Mizore Shirayuki.

"What are you doing here? Students aren't allowed."

Mizore didn't acknowledge that statement. All she said, nearly whispered, was, "Nigeki's in trouble."

"What?" Bast asked.

"The Student Police attacked him and took him away," Mizore answered, tonelessly. "I need help getting him back."

"And how do you know he was attacked and taken away, but you're here telling me about it now?"

"I was in the bushes watching him," Mizore replied with no hesitation or shame whatsoever.

" **Why**?"

"Because it's what I do," Mizore answered as if it was the most casual thing in the world.

Miss Bast decided to ignore that last remark. If the student she was supposed to be keeping an eye on had been attacked and carried off, she needed to do something. But at the same time, the Headmaster had told her to observe and guide Nigeki as gently as she could so she didn't tip him off she was keeping an eye on him. **No matter what**. Meaning she couldn't expect a lot of help there.

That is, if she went and asked for help by herself…

But after that morning, she knew she wasn't the only faculty member interested in his welfare.

"Come on," Miss Bast said and headed down toward the end of the hall. She spotted the nametag reading "Dreemurr" and gave the door a sharp knock. A minute later Mrs. Dreemurr appeared in the doorway, half-moon reading glasses balanced on her nose and a book tucked under one arm. Miss Bast could read something about snails from the title, but that was all.

"Hello, can I help you?" Mrs. Dreemurr asked, looking a little surprised and more than a little cautious at being disturbed so late by people she didn't know.

"Nigeki Hitoribo's in trouble with the Security Committee," Miss Bast said, and Mrs. Dreemurr sighed.

"I tried to warn the Headmaster about them," she said, and Bast's heart sank. "He just said something about needing to ensure the school's protection, letting the students know they're safe at all times. I was going to talk to the boy, see what he felt he should do, but now…"

Bast took her by the wrist and started dragging her out of her room. " **Now** , there's two of us, and maybe two can do a job one couldn't."

* * *

"Still having second thoughts, Cerea?" Kuyou asked over his shoulder, that smug little smile of his seeming even colder.

Behind him Centorea fumed inwardly. He was her captain, but that **didn't** mean he was familiar enough to her to be using that nickname. She'd joined the Security Committee because they were protecting the students from all the dangers the world held for monsters. But…

"He's just a kid like us. You even said he was trying to leave when you caught him. He was waiting for the bus. If he was some kind of infiltrator, why would he be taking the bus to leave?" she asked.

"It's your first one, huh?" asked one of the boys flanking Kuyou, his face dominated by the exact same smirk.

"What?"

"It happens to all of us," Kuyou explained. "Well, some of us. The first time we bring in someone dangerous it seems unbelievable. They look so normal, it's hard to believe they could be planning to hurt anybody.

"But appearances can be deceiving," he went on. "It's what we're all here to learn, isn't it? How to hide what we are so we stay out of trouble. Perhaps some of us have already learned to do that for their own reasons. Like that kid back in the cell.

"Cerea, you have to understand just how heavily the forces of humanity are arrayed against our kind. Not just Kamen Riders, but the Makai Kishi, Slayers, families like the Starlings…Even those ignoramuses with the laser backpacks and jumpsuits have enough firepower to make them a serious threat."

"I just…," Centorea started to say, but stopped herself before she could say something that got her in trouble with her superiors. "My shift's over, I'll see you tomorrow." She split off from the group and went down another hallway.

Kuyou waited until she was out of sight, then said to the others, "Keep an extra-close eye on our new prisoner, understand?"

"Perfectly, sir."

* * *

Miss Bast shoved the doors to the Headmaster's office open, and bellowed, "Mikogami, you'd better be ready to—"

"Good evening, Felicia," said the familiar robed figure seated behind the ornate wooden desk at the far end of the room. "I've been expecting you. Oh, I wasn't expecting you to bring along a friend. Greetings to you as well, Toriel. It must be important to have the both of you here at this time of night."

"Don't give me that," Bast snarled. "Those security punks of yours took that kid I'm supposed to be mentoring for you into custody."

"Did they?" was all he said.

"You bring me all the way here to keep an eye on this kid, then he gets hauled in, and that's all you have to say?!" she demanded.

"Felicia, please," the Headmaster said, limply holding up a hand. "Your heart is in the right place, don't doubt that for a minute, but the integrity of the Security Committee can't be undermined. It pains me to lose such a potentially valuable asset, but he's no good to anyone if he lets himself be caught so easily."

Mrs. Dreemurr stepped past Miss Bast, a fire seeming to light in her eyes at what she'd just heard. "Excuse me?" she said with quiet menace. "An **asset**? This is a child's life you're talking about." Clearly his remark had hit a sore spot with her.

"Toriel, I appreciate your concern but this is a school for **young adults** ," he replied. "You're not from this world, and there is a very delicate balance here. Soon they'll be out on their own, and they must learn now that their actions have **consequences** , for **good** or for ill, and how those actions **affect others**. Otherwise, our entire world could be discovered and destroyed by humanity. I can't spare one person and sacrifice us all."

"What?" Miss Bast demanded, but Mrs. Dreemurr calmed down visibly at what the Headmaster had said to them.

"Thank you, sir, for making your feelings on the matter clear," Mrs. Dreemurr said, and started walking out of the office. Miss Bast looked back at the Headmaster for a second and caught what looked like a knowing grin on his face, then left too.

Once the door clicked shut, Miss Bast turned to her fellow teacher. "You picked up on that too, right? Mikogami was telling us to get involved, wasn't he?"

"Oh, I don't know," Mrs. Dreemurr said, but the coy smile on her face said otherwise. "You topsiders don't still make much sense to me. I think there was something in there about people who wouldn't worry about much about breaking rules if a good friend of theirs was in a lot of trouble. As a pair of responsible adults, we should probably be looking out for people like that."

Miss Bast smiled softly and shook her hand. "Look, if we're going to be working together, I'd like if you could call me Felicia."

"Toriel. Pleased to make your acquaintance. But now, I'm thinking we should probably go see if we can find where that ice girl got off to. Somehow I get the feeling she's looking for a few other people who aren't afraid of breaking some rules," Toriel smiled.

* * *

Mizore indeed hadn't been idle, moving with a purpose as soon as she managed to slip away from the two teachers.

She stopped at a door on the first floor of the girls' dorm in her search for help. It was someone she expected to still remember being on the receiving end of an outburst Mizore'd had not that long ago, but this girl seemed smart enough to overlook that. And, Mizore hoped, she'd be a big help talking others into helping them…

After a minute solid of knocking the door clunked and opened a crack, and on the other side sat Meroune. She looked surprised for a second to see who was outside, then managed an, "Oh, hello. Did you forget something the other night?"

"Nigeki's in trouble," Mizore said with her typical bluntness, but Meroune saw a distressed light flickering in the snow girl's eyes.

"With who?" Meroune asked.

"Student Police," Mizore replied, using the group's more derogatory nickname.

Meroune nodded, then turned around and wheeled herself to the edge of the pool where she slept and threw off her dress, then dove into the waters, her pink tail flaring out from where her legs had been. She swam to the bottom and stayed there for a minute before coming back up and dropping a black metal box on the edge.

Slowly, almost as if she was afraid of what was inside, Meroune lifted the top of the box and revealed a pink conch shell. Mizore wasn't an expert on things like that but to her it looked as if the shell had been carved instead of coming from nature, maybe out of something like pink marble. A circle of tiny blue gems and pearls was worked into the top of it.

"What's that for?" Mizore asked, toneless as always.

"It's a powerful weapon," Meroune said gravely, and noting Mizore's slightly disbelieving expression, added, "I'm not supposed to be using it, but Hitoribo-san isn't supposed to be using his to fight either."

Mizore nodded silently. He wasn't supposed to be fighting, he was supposed to be avoiding it at all costs. But he'd broken that rule for her, and for Meroune too.

"Why don't we go see if those friends of his from the Newspaper Club can help us?" Meroune suggested. "Strength in numbers, right?"

"Right," Mizore said quietly, part of her not liking the idea of having all these others around. But what they were going to fight for was too precious endanger by going after it with less than everything they could get…

* * *

A pair of black-suited guards stood in front of the doors leading to the dungeons. They were only teenagers like her, but Centorea knew better than to underestimate them. They had to be some of the toughest monster types on campus, and ruthless enough to earn Kuyou's attention. She had to be sure she gave nothing away or she'd be in serious trouble.

Sucking in a deep breath to calm herself and drive away her doubts about betraying her superiors, and stepped into view, looking as confident and important as she could manage. She walked up to the guards and said in the haughty voice she'd spent the last hour practicing, "The captain wants me to inspect one of his prisoners. We've got a real dangerous one down there now, after all."

"We sure do," one guard asked. The other nodded, and Centorea felt a surge of reassurance. "But he warned us about someone showing sympathy for the really dangerous prisoner. Someone with a giant blonde ponytail and a giant rack."

"Ack!" Centorea gasped in embarrassment as she realized they meant her, and were both leering at her chest. She angrily crossed her arms in front of her body, and the guards cackled at her, but also stepped together to keep her from trying to charge past them.

"Are you going to turn around and walk out of here like a good soldier, or are you here to give us some fight practice?" one of them asked.

"Or maybe give us something else a little more… **personal** so we don't tell the captain?" the other asked, leering even wider, and his partner laughed and slapped him five.

Centorea's face was bright red at that, and only partly from anger. "If you think I'd ever let you dirty perverts come anywhere near—"

"Guess that's our answer," said one of the guards. His human features started to distort, but the fur had hardly started growing from his bulging biceps before Centorea lashed out with a kick that smashed him through the doors he'd been trying to guard. He was out cold before he even hit the ground.

Her legs had been replaced by the body of a powerful brown-coated horse, and as the other guard watched in surprise she unsheathed a long gleaming sword from her back and aimed it at him. She closed in quickly to deal with him too before he could transform, not intending to give him the chance to unleash his powers against her.

But unfortunately for her, Centorea hadn't been completely right in her guess at the guards' power. As she slashed at the one still on his feet he shifted into his monster form too, but instead of growing into some powerful creature he shrank into a tiny black shape barely a foot tall. He spread his leathery wings and flew away down the hall past her so fast that by the time Centorea had recognized that he'd finished changing, he was already gone.

But there was no time to think about chasing him down, she'd just be giving the Security Committee more time to catch up and overwhelm her. Instead Centorea ducked her head and galloped down the hall toward the dungeons.

She'd been raised her entire life as an honorable warrior. Honorable warriors didn't hang death sentences on people over a superficial resemblance. And she had to be sure about the prisoner, even if it meant leaving the Security Committee in disgrace.

* * *

"…me too?" grumbled Ginei as Kurumu dragged him along by the arm. As she did the clouds parted and moonlight fell across the wolf's head pendant he wore. If he was going to be dragged into a fight, at least this was the best possible night for it.

"Yeah, you too!" Kurumu glowered. "You said you thought he was a good person too!"

He grunted and pulled away from the succubus. "I said it was a possibility." From out of nowhere Kurumu produced a giant paper fan and smacked it against the back of his head, knocking him flat. In her other hand she waved around a waved around a fan of photos.

"Maybe you want us to hand these over the Swim Club! And…and whoever else these are!" Kurumu roared.

"Maybe we shouldn't be fighting ourselves?" an anxious-looking Moka suggested. "Or make a lot of noise? What if they hear us and the whole Security Committee comes out ot get us?" Kurumu turned to glare at her, eyes glowing red with anger, and Moka let out an "eeep" and took a step back.

Kurumu brandished her oversize paper fan to the sky like a sword. "Let them!" she declared. "We're not pushovers either, we're monsters just like them!"

"You look stupid," Mizore said quietly and casually as she pushed Meroune's wheelchair behind Kurumu.

Moka chuckled nervously and looked around. Besides the others Yukari the young witch hung onto her arm for reassurance, Enrique Sakamoto the hulking Brazilian boy stood by Meroune's side, blushing some as Meroune looked up at him in quiet appreciation. In the sky above them circled Ren, keeping watch.

This little ragtag group they'd put together didn't seem like the group of powerful heroes they seemed to need to go taking on the Security Committee. They were the monsters who kept all the other monsters on campus in line, right? Their group, on the other hand, didn't even have a leader or a goal they all shared. Kurumu had dragged Ginei along because they needed all the help they could get and he had no love for the Student Police. Enrique had come along because Meroune had pleaded with him and praised his strength. Ren hadn't been too eager to pick a fight with the Student Police, but he said he couldn't refuse to repay a favor.

And Moka had to admit to herself that deep down she was there for the same reason most of them were: for a chance to save the day and get ahead of the competition.

" _It's true, though, isn't it?_ " asked the harsh voice of her true self, the eye on the Rosario flaring. _"All of you, forming your little war party all because your panties are wet over the same little weakling who thinks making a couple friends is going to keep his inner beast under control."_

Moka bit her lip, wanting to give some kind of sharp retort to that remark, but nothing came to mind. Her nature wasn't to scream and fight, like it seemed to be for some of the girls she knew at this school. Yet here she was, outside the Student Police's headquarters and knowing they'd surely have to fight if they wanted Nigeki back.

Should they have been doing this, picking a fight with school officials? After all, they were here to learn how to hide themselves and avoid trouble after they left school and most of them moved into the human world.

" _You sound just like he does, you know,_ " her deeper self jeered.

Moka clenched her teeth in anger, but before her argument with herself could continue Ren landed, the crinkled yellow hem of his nightgown swirling around his feet. "Somebody saw me," he said gravely.

"Was it one of them?" Enrique asked.

"No, it was—" Ren started to reply, but stopped when someone else seemed to come plummeting out of the sky and landed in the middle of the group on all fours like a cat, bright blue hair flaring out behind her. She was barefoot, and it looked like hooked claws, each of them a shining red in color, had already started to form in place of her nails.

"Looks like we've got a couple of curfew-breakers here!" she announced, but there was a joking smile on her face. A second later another figure appeared, and immediately Moka blushed and clutched her cheeks as she recognized them.

"Mrs. Dreemurr!" she exclaimed, and was surprised not to hear a sarcastic quip from her other self. Instead she was sure for a second she felt a sensation of warmth from inside herself that didn't seem to belong just to her.

"Please," she said patiently, "Toriel will be quicker, and with what I think you have in mind, quickness would seem ideal. Felicia?"

She nodded in response to Toriel's question. "If we're gonna make this work we're gonna need to move fast, and _be quiet_. Think you kids can handle that?"

"We're not kids," Kurumu protested, but in a whisper. "And wait, do you mean we're not in trouble?"

"No, but a friend of yours is, isn't he?" Toriel answered. "So we'd better get going before it's too late."

Again Moka felt that strange extra warmth as their ragtag little group went off, now following the pair of teachers who'd come to help.

* * *

Centorea finished tying a length of heavy chain around the door handles behind her then secured the other end around a metal hook in the wall. It wouldn't keep her pursuers out forever, but forever was how long she'd wonder if she'd done the right thing if she left now.

From the hallway up ahead she could hear screams and prepared to fight her way through another group of guards. But as they turned a corner and came her way she was surprised to see them already in their monster forms…one of them covered in leaves and bark, another a hulking two-headed brute, a bird-faced creature with thick feathered wings under its arms.

But as Centorea braced herself, she was astonished to see them run right past her and try to open the door she'd just sealed behind her. "Eh…what…what are you doing?!" she demanded. None of them turned to face her or answered her, instead just unwinding the chain and flinging the doors open before running away as fast as they could, the winged one even taking to the air.

For a second Centorea thought about following them, but she was an honorable knight. It was why she'd joined this group, and now it was why she was leaving it if she had to. She galloped down the hall, weapon ready for whatever they'd been running away from.

A minute later she found herself back in the dungeons, a few guards pointing long tridents at one cell. The one where they'd thrown the supposed Kamen Rider before. A few other prisoners were shaking the bars to their cells, screaming in terror to be let out.

And in the cell she'd come to investigate was a monster with shiny black skin, his hands formed into a pair of semi-circular blades that he was bashing against the bars, sending sparks flying. Those cells had been created to hold even monsters, obviously, but the bars were already bending and dust was falling from where the bars were mounted in the doorway.

But with one last massive swing he knocked the door free and sent it flying across the room. It crashed into one and carried him all the way across the room, flattening him against the wall. The other two managed to jump out of the way but were caught by the edge of the door as it flew back, knocking them down too. They took one last look at their former captive, then crawl-dashed out of the dungeon as fast as they could.

With them gone, the prisoner turned in Centorea's direction, his eyes locking with hers. The rest of his body was a solid black shell, looking like impenetrable armor. But his eyes…his eyes looked like windows into some endless void, with small points of light flowing inside them and being pulled away into darkness. Centorea gathered all of her willpower and forced herself to look away, afraid she might somehow be pulled in too if she looked for too long.

It had been such a terrifying, alien experience the colors and shapes of the dungeon swam in front of her eyes for a second. When she started to recognize what was around her again she made out a mumbling voice. "All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust…" It was the bizarre black monster, who stood staring off into space as he mumbled those words over and over.

She was afraid of looking into those eyes again, but Centorea forced herself to look at his face for at least a second, and as she looked away she was sure of it.

It was the boy they'd brought in, but not him either. His face was twisted into a mask of despair that no mortal creature, not even a monster, could possibly have formed on its own. For just a second a belt fastened with a throbbing red gem appeared around his, shedding a pitiful light against the black shell covering his body, then it was gone again.

Suddenly he threw himself at her like a black spear through the air. Centorea gasped in surprise and planted her hooves before he crashed into her, pushing her back across the floor. With all her strength she swung her sword and knocked him across the room, crashing into and bending the bars of one of the cells. The overweight boy trapped inside screamed and retreated to the back of his cell, probably glad that they were between him and the black monster.

Centorea gritted her teeth. This seemed nothing like any Kamen Rider she'd ever heard about, but she was determined to get to the bottom of this, and that meant catching this monster to do it. She shrugged off a shiver a shiver of fear, unshouldered a heavy shield onto her arm, then charged.

* * *

It was as if there was a lake of black in front of the doors of the small building above the dungeon where the Student Police kept troublesome students. Every single member f the group had been called out and were watching the entrance, and they parted like waves as an imposing boy with long blond hair, hands clasped nonchalantly behind his back walked through them.

Kurumu took one look at the mob then her wings burst from her back and her fingernails had extended into foot-long swords. "All right, let's go!" she exclaimed, but Felicia pulled her back. "Let me go! He's probably cha-" Kurumu said and tried to pull away, but Felicia's hand had turned into a furry white cat's paw with even sharper-looking claws of her own.

"He's probably **what**?" Felicia asked.

Moka timidly stepped forward to answer. "Nigeki has this other kind of monster in him. If he loses control of himself it takes over his body. It's pretty dangerous."

"She's not kidding," Enrique affirmed, and Meroune sympathetically put her hand on his arm. Immediately his face turned dark red, but Meroune seemed oblivious.

"And you're planning to just fight through all those guys? Maybe you forgot, but they're just as powerful as you. A lot of them are probably even stronger," Felicia pointed out.

"Who cares?!" Kurumu screamed. "They wouldn't all be there if he wasn't in like the worst kind of trouble ever! **I have to go!** "

"Um, guys?" Moka gently tried to interrupt.

"And that'll make everything all right, will it?" Felicia asked, not hearing her.

"Have you ever even **been** in love?" Kurumu snarled in retort. Felicia didn't reply, looking over at something going on behind the succubus. It took her a second to overcome her disbelief, but Meroune, Enrique and Toriel had broken away and appeared to be talking to a few Student Police members near the back of the group. And while there was a pleasant smile on Meroune's face, Felicia couldn't help noticing she was holding a sea shell tightly in her hands, as if ready to use it. For what?

With the surprise taken out of their surprise attack, Felicia crept closer, experience telling her to stay out of sight until she knew exactly what was going on and how best to react.

"What?" the closer of the Student Police asked, evidently not quite believing what he'd just heard.

"I said my true love is down there," Meroune patiently repeated herself. "If you and your friends would please move out of the way, I'll go in and sort this out." Enrique's face melted in despair as she said this.

"Girl, maybe you haven't heard," he angrily replied, "but there's a _Kamen Rider_ down there. Armor, mask, belt, jump kicks that'd smash you into little pieces of monster gore. Everything but the bike. You go down there, you're not coming back up."

"Maybe you should let us try," Toriel said. "If he's so dangerous, what makes you think you'll fare any better? After all, doesn't the Kamen Rider win every time he fights a monster? Maybe fighting's not the answer here."

"Get out of here, all of you! It's a matter of campus security!"

Meroune smiled sadly. "Then I guess you leave me no choice. Aquaus, ultimuus, summunuus." She held up the shell and suddenly a tidal wave ripped from the opening and washed over the Student Police. A few had a chance to yell in surprise before they were slammed against the side of the building. An icy wind picked up and froze the water, trapping most of the attackers inside it, seemingly courtesy of the lavender-haired girl who appeared from nowhere.

A lot of the Student Police screamed in rage as they managed to shift into their true forms and smash free with raw strength. They surged over the sheet of ice toward Meroune, and behind her Enrique and Toriel had already shifted into the forms of a merman and a goat-headed monster with balls of fire blazing in her hands.

But suddenly a blue and white blur ripped through the Student Police and scattered heavy monsters everywhere. It stopped, or rather **uncurled** in front of Meroune and the others. It was Felicia, but now fully shifted into her true form, a white tail curling out from the base of her spine and huge feline paws replacing her hands and feet, and only thin strips of white fur curving her lady parts.

"Should've known," she sighed. "It always ends like this." She crouched then pounced into a gang of monsters, kicking and smacking the campus enforcers away with her powerful legs and paws. Toriel lobbed her fireballs at the ones who got past Felicia. As they fought hard, Ginei dropped to all fours and howled as he morphed into a gray-furred wolfman and pounced into the fray, kicking and charging.

"Hurry!" Toriel said over her shoulder. "We'll keep them busy! Go save your friend!"

Enrique nodded and pushed Meroune toward the building as their teachers held off the Student Police. The rest of their little rescue party ran after them, Yukari waving her wand and clobbering a few monsters who got past Felicia and Toriel with falling wash tubs.

Moka squeaked with terror as she ran, but blew past Kurumu and kicking up dust. She was going to be part of this, she was going to show her other self that being able to crush another monster wasn't the only way to be brave. She had saved Nigeki when the Tear had taken control of him before, she could do it again.

Couldn't she?

* * *

Sparks that were somehow white and black at the same time flew off of Nigeki's side as Centorea struck him again with all her warrior's strength. And she let herself feel a small rush of pride as he swung at her head with his hand, morphed into a mass of sharpened tentacles, and missed with his slowed swing. Whatever kind of monster he was, even he couldn't stand up to a relentless assault from a determined warrior forever.

But however hard she tried to hide it, her legs were starting to shake from all the energy she'd been putting into her attacks; his hide was so thick, only her strongest blows seemed to do anything to him at all.

Suddenly he brought his arms back behind him and swung them forward, his fingers allextending out into long bladed tendrils that reached all the way to the walls. He slashed forward suddenly, digging furrows in the stone and doorways of the first few cells and knocking a storm of jagged rock and metal bars toward Centorea. She gasped and raised her shield in front of herself a second before jagged pieces of metal and rock lodged themselves in it, clenching her teeth to avoid crying out as one piece of metal gouged her arm and another a leg.

She threw down the destroyed shield and rushed toward Nigeki, who stabbed awkwardly at her head with a bladed arm before she twisted her upper half out of the way at the last second and smashed her front hooves against his body. A look of surprise seemed to form on his face as he went down and made a sound like hollow metal as he hit the ground, leaving a dent in it around his body.

Before he could think about attack again she pinned his arms with her hooves. He struggled for a few seconds but fell back seeming to accept defeat.

"Now, tell me!" she demanded. "What are you?! Why are you here?"

He moaned a reply, "All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust…"

"Answer me!" Centorea yelled, levelling the tip of her sword at his face.

All he said was what he'd said before. "All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust…" Centorea grunted in annoyance. Before she got the chance to think of another interrogation tactic, she realized she wasn't alone.

"Hold it right there, whoever you are! I fought through all your guards and I just beat your dreaded Kamen Rider, don't think I'll have any trouble with you!" Centorea called in challenge, hoping her voice didn't quiver from exhaustion. But the intruder wasn't a member of the Student Police. Instead it was a quintet of girls, seemingly just students. A girl with a lollipop sticking out of her mouth and thick ice claws on her hands, one with huge bat-like wings folded up on her back, one wearing a peaked witch's hat and carrying a wand that looked like a toy, another one with long wings sticking from her back and still dressed in her nightgown, and the last was a girl wearing a Rosario around her neck.

"…who are you and what do you think you're doing down here?" Centorea demanded.

Kurumu ignored the question, then squealed in fear when she saw Nigeki pinned underneath her and flew forward only to stop short when she found herself looking down the blade of Centorea's sword. "I'll say it again: who are you and what do you think you're doing here? And who's **he**? **What** is going on here?!"

"Leave him alone!" Kurumu screamed. But with Centorea distracted, suddenly Nigeki grabbed her by the legs and flipped her off him, then jumped awkwardly to his feet. His right hand morphed and formed into a long scythe, but he didn't move to attack. Instead he'd locked eyes with Kurumu who stood frozen as she looked into those bottomless voids in his face.

* * *

It was as if she was no longer standing in the dungeon. Instead Kurumu felt as if she were being pulled deeper and deeper into a black void. Even though she was surrounded completely by blackness somehow she could see a figure in the distance. Someone who seemed surrounded by light against so much darkness, head thrown back and fists clenched tight raised high over his head as if crying out in terrible pain. It was Nigeki Hitoribo.

As soon as she recognized him, everything that had happened between them came flooding back as if whatever was going on was wrenching the memories from her mind and flashing them in front of her face. She saw herself meeting with him while he stood in a tree practicing his flute. When the Tear had taken him over before and lashed out at her. Then when she'd come by his room later on to try to apologize for what she'd done. She saw him flinching away from her, then letting her in anyway.

Kurumu clenched her fists and steered toward where he floated in the void, then grabbed his arm and started pulling him back with all her might.

She gritted her teeth as she faced a painful thought: that maybe just the fact that she'd done something terrible by unleashing his dark side and he'd forgiven her didn't mean they were destined for each other.

But maybe she didn't need to leave it up to destiny.

* * *

"What's going on?" Moka cried in alarm.

"I don't know, but he isn't attacking anymore. Isn't that good?" Yukari replied, raising the edge of her cape to hide a smirk at Kurumu being frozen like a statue and sliding a felt-tip pen out of a pocket before sidling closer to the immobile succubus.

" **Who** are you and **what** is going **on** here?!" Centorea demanded again, hobbling closer and leveling her sword at them with a shaking hand.

Mizore pointed to Nigeki and said softly, "We're his friends. Who are **you**?"

"I'm…I was…My Centorea. I belong the Security Committee, but when the so-called Kamen Rider, your friend here, was captured…," she sucked in a breath. "I wanted to talk to him. See if he really was a spy or an assassin or whatever the captain thinks a Kamen Rider's here to do. When I got here, he was…like that."

They tensed and turned around at the sound of rapid footsteps coming down the stairs to the dungeon, and a few seconds later Meroune appeared, being pushed faithfully by Enrique. Then loping on all fours was a large wolf-man. "We're here," Meroune said, speaking for all of them. "Is my prince all right?"

"We're not really sure," Moka answered, walking forward to stand by Nigeki's side, not seeming to notice as a grinning Yukari scribbled on Kurumu's face. "We just came down here and we was like this. From what he told me before he would've had to be hurt or lost control of his emotions."

"He was in pretty bad shape after the captain got through with him," Centorea explained.

"We shouldn't stay down here long," Moka warned the others. "We need to bring him back to normal so we can show he's not a real Kamen Rider like the Student Police think." She slipped her arms around Nigeki's body and squeezed him tightly, lightly pressing her cheek to his. As she did Centorea noticed the temperature in the room seeming to drop, and she could swear the ice claws over Mizore's hands were getting longer.

Meroune looked on uncertainly, finally asking, "I'm guessing something is supposed to happen from this?"

Moka stepped back, looking worried. Nigeki made no sign from the contact and the black shell still covered his body. "I don't know…it worked before, got him to change back to normal."

Quietly Meroune suggested, "Kurono-san seems to have done something to keep him docile…maybe the rest of us should help too." She looked up into Nigeki's eyes, then her own went blank and she stared at him totally transfixed.

Yukari turned to see what Meroune was looking at and met Nigeki's eyes next too. Moka stood protectively by the little witch before she look Nigeki in the face and went rigid, Mizore silently stepping forward and locking eyes with Nigeki herself. Ren went totally still alongside her.

Enrique looked over at Centorea helplessly, who shrugged back and sank to her haunches. He glanced at Ginei, who looked away, perhaps resigned to what a bad idea this whole thing had been.

Now what were they supposed to do?

* * *

Darkness flowed past all around them. Small lights, impossible to identify, raced by toward some unfathomable destination. Moka looked around and saw the other girls being drawn forward beside her, and tried to open her mouth but couldn't seem to form the thoughts to say anything.

But after a few seconds there was a point of light in the distance that wasn't pulled away by whatever force surrounded them, and after another few seconds it started to take the shape of a humanoid form, Nigeki's humanoid form, and Kurumu had grabbed one arm and was trying to pull him back away from the force drawing them onward.

Moka found herself unable to look away from his anguished face, and a splitting pain shot through her head as at the same time she saw their first meeting where she almost ran over him on her way into school. The relief she felt at meeting a friendly vampire so soon and disgust at what a fool he looked like avoiding her and cracking his head on a tombstone. Next she remembered him fighting off Saizou with awesome strength and at the same time thinking what a coward he was for needing a crutch to be able to fight a lesser monster. The fear she'd felt when he'd lost control to the Tear and lashed at Kurumu and Enrique, and disgusted at him lacking control over his nature. Understanding of hiding from her when he'd revealed himself as something that in so many ways was just like one of the most loathed of monster hunters, and at the same time loathing him herself for not reveling in such awesome power.

Suddenly a hot anger formed in Moka's stomach and she found herself next to Nigeki and grabbing his other arm. Kurumu looked over at her in surprise, then nodded and looked upward as they tried to pull Nigeki away, back to their own world.

* * *

Yukari saw his face locked in a silent scream. Then in the next instant she could see Moka and Nigeki standing up to the class president and his cronies even though they barely knew her, and then fighting Lord Raptor to protect her even after all the mockery she'd laid on him for the silly display of his "Mike Jaguar" outburst. Then when Ginei had confronted Nigeki with knowing the truth about his double identity, Nigeki had willingly come and waited to hear the verdict, not trying to attack or run away from whatever his fate would be.

She hadn't seen him much since being turned down for a spot in the drama club, but Moka wondered how he was doing sometimes, and if a brave beautiful girl like that continued to hope for the best for him, then maybe that hope for a three-way marriage could still pan out after all.

The young witch reached out and grabbed Nigeki's wrist on Moka's side, and they started pulling against the darkness even faster.

* * *

Mizore reached out and took Nigeki's arm next.

As she looked at his anguished face she saw a stream of memories too. The first meeting with someone else who'd been apart from monster society as much as she had. His coming to her rescue against Kotsubo and saving her from the worst kind of assault that could happen to a person.

And…and despite all the girls he'd met since coming to this school, he wasn't settling for just anyone. That night the mermaid had come back to his room and showed him her performance, Mizore had seen what she was really up to. He hadn't fallen for it either. There was only person for him, and he knew it.

He had saved her, and now she could save him and start building the foundations of a future between two outsiders. Mizore reached out and took Nigeki's hand on Kurumu's side.

* * *

Ren watched with amusement as the memories cycled by his eyes, of Nigeki standing up for him against a closedminded bully who knew the truth while the young vampire himself did not. The look of stupefaction on his face when he realized just why Ren was being bullied was priceless.

But for all that, Nigeki Hitoribo had been someone who'd come to his aid without even knowing why Ren was being persecuted. When he learned, his course didn't change at all.

Nigeki Hitoribo was a strange person, but if what his female friends had been saying about him was true he was a strange person who was willing to stand up for others.

If he was willing to do that, how could Ren do any less?

He hooked his arms under Nigeki's and helped pull against the darkness.

* * *

Meroune was the last, her heart seeming to clench as she saw the anguished face.

Memories flowed in front of her as they had with the others, of the terrifying Bloodstone catching sight of her in the swimming pool, but recognizing she was no danger and letting her go to focus his strength on the other mermaids attacking their fellow students.

It seemed such a ridiculous thing that would inevitably come between them; she was a creature of the sea, and something as simple as water was the bane of his kind. That which was her true home could never be his.

But knowing that made Meroune want to overcome the divide between them even more. He'd endured something so deadly to him, and had still had it in him to give her a word of comfort afterward. Surely that meant there could be more between than being co-stars in the school play.

Gently she slipped her slender arms around the immobile vampire's waist and smiled to herself. The other night she had been disappointed at how he had resisted her advances and insisted on escorting her home, but now it was a sign of reassurance. He wasn't looking for a cheap fling, and wouldn't be easily seduced by any pretty face to come along, and Meroune knew she wasn't the only one of those he'd met at this school.

It was like she'd always hoped it would be. Apair of star-crossed lovers, seemingly destined to be pushed apart by their differing natures, and by his battle against an inner darkness that threatened anyone who dared to close. A fine tragic romance.

And none of that mattered. To her, or to any of them. A second later, light filled their eyes.

* * *

Suddenly Nigeki's body trembled, and the shiny black shell over him started to crack, falling away from his eyes in particular and revealing those of a scared and confused young man beneath. Around him the girls gasped in astonishment as they found themselves back in the dungeon.

"What's…going on?!" Nigeki exclaimed, the black shell starting to creep closed around his eyes and mouth again. "Hensh…" he gasped, and for a second the Bloodstone flickered into visibility around his waist. Before it had driven back the Tear part of his being by amplifying the Vampire in him, but now he didn't have the strength to make it work.

As the shell continued forming over his eyes Mizore darted in front of Nigeki, then leaned her neck to one side and pulled her collar with one hand, exposing the skin. Nigeki looked at her in horror and let a precious second pass slip away, but then extended his fangs and bit into her neck.

Her blood had a chill to it that made his teeth ache, but it was vibrant and alive, the opposite of the Tear trying to close over him and absorb him forever. The voice that replaced him when it took over screamed in his ear, " _Drink her dry! Sate your thirst! The flesh is weak, her death is the only way to prolong yours!_ " But after a few seconds he pulled back from her and gently lowered Mizore to her knees.

Immediately Kurumu was in front of him, offering her neck to him too, and he drank deeply, grateful for the salvation she was offering him. After a second she grunted and asked, while forcing a smile, "Is this what love feels like?"

"I…don't know," Nigeki answered uncertainly, anxious just to take this opportunity to regain his strength she was giving him.

As he pulled back from her as well and gently set the weakened succubus down, Yukari started to step forward to offer her blood too but Moka pulled her back. "No, you're too little," she told the young witch warningly.

"I'm old enough!" Yukari protested as Meroune wheeled forward and offered her neck next.

But Moka didn't let go. "That's not the point. You're little, and it's not safe yet," she said.

"Awww!" Yukari whined, frowning fiercely at the beatific smile on Meroune's face as Nigeki drank her blood. Even Ren stepped forward and offered his neck, and his head lolled back, a smile on his face as his long hair dangled behind him, and Moka almost tried to take Yukari's wand away.

Finally Nigeki stepped back into the center of the dungeon. The dark shell around his body had almost finished crawling over his eyes again, but he cried out in a booming voice that shook the walls.

" **HENSHIN!"**

* * *

The entire dungeon was filled with a blinding red glow and the other incarcerated students retreated deeper into their cells to avoid it searing their eyes. Nigeki's rescuers cringed away from it too, but then gasped in surprise as they felt a pair of powerful arms gathering them up and pulling them together against him. A minute later the light cleared, and the five found themselves crowded together in Bloodstone's arms.

"Is…is everything okay now?" Moka asked, a hopeful smile on her face but the slowness of her words indicated worry. She was still worried.  
"The Tear's gone again. For now," Bloodstone said in Nigeki's voice, a little rougher thanks to his monstrous nature being magnified. "Thanks to you all…Kurumu, what happened to your face?"

"What? What do you mean?" asked Kurumu, who had panda eye blotches drawn on her face, crooked whiskers and the kanji for "iyarashii" written across her forehead. She immediately turned to Yukari, teeth clenched in rage. "YOU!" The young witch let out a yelp of fright before Kurumu lunged and caught her in a headlock.

"Is this…something they get up to a lot?" Bloodstone asked in confusion.

"Sometimes," Moka said, a sweatdrop the size of a bowling ball hanging onto her forehead. "Usually when Kurumu brings cookies to club meetings, won't say who they're for and Yukari tries to guess."

Bloodstone flinched at that. He actually had a whole cabinet back in his room full of bags of homemade cookies from Kurumu. And Meroune. And Mizore. But after he'd been stuck in the bathroom the entire night he'd tried some of Mizore's cooking for the first time, he hadn't dared to touch anyone else's.

Centorea cleared her throat to get their attention. "But now what?" she asked, walking up to them. " **Are** you a Kamen Rider? **Are** you a danger to the students? Why are you here, looking like that, if you aren't?"

"Why, I'd say it looks like he's collecting all his conspirators," said a voice from back toward the stairway. There stood Kuyou, hands clutched casually behind his back and a triumphant smile on his face. Behind him were a handful of other members of the Student Police, and Enrique the merman moved between them and his weakened friends, inflating his chest to blast poison gas if he needed to. Kuyou's smile didn't move at all. "Putting off the execution was a good idea after all, wasn't it? His friends blew their cover to ensure his safety and we caught them all at once!"

Enrique went into a fighting stance. "Don't try it, buddy. My dad was a Darkstalker, he taught me everything he knows," he warned.

"The Darkstalkers are ancient history," Kuyou replied as he closed in. "If they were here now they'd probably be asking us where they can get a deal on denture cream. Put those hands down, boy, and this will go better for all of you. Not much, but you'll have fewer broken bones to go along with your execution."

Enrique answered by blasting a cloud of purple gas down the hall toward Kuyou. Two of his underlings started to move in front of him to protect him, but Kuyou pushed them aside, and his body seemed to explode in flame. From out of the fiery mass surrounding him shot a barrage of fireballs that incinerated the cloud and went flying forward to explode around Enrique. The merman cried out in pain as he was blown off his feet and landed hard, his skin charred and fin torn.

Bloodstone groaned, his body still sore from just reclaiming control, but stood up and got ready to fight. Kuyou had beaten him before, but this time he wouldn't hold anything back. This little fire freak thought he was the strongest, but he hadn't seen anything yet. His eyes started to vanish behind his mask as he let Bloodstone take over completely, but he stopped suddenly as Moka, Mizore, Kurumu, Yukari and even Ren and Meroune formed a wall in front of him.

"What do you all think you're doing?" Bloodstone asked.

"You can't have him!" Moka said, ignoring the question. "He's not a Kamen Rider! He didn't come here to kill anybody! He came here to make friends and learn how to control his monster nature!"

Kuyou smiled still as he stepped out of the cloud of flame, totally unharmed. "Of course you'd say something like that when you're cornered and weakened," he said. "Any coward would. But there's no escape this time. Boys, if you would?" His underlings stepped forward and shifted into their true forms, led by a stony golem and a snarling three-headed dog man.

Another fireball came arcing from one of Kuyou's hands toward Nigeki's defenders, but Mizore lifted shaking hands and hurriedly formed an ice wall in front of them. Kuyou's fireball smashed through it easily, peppering the air with razor-sharp ice crystals.

"Out of the way!" Bloodstone yelled, shoving the girls out of the path of a huge chunk of ice. Kurumu landed roughly on her shoulder, but it was nothing compared to what would happen if that ice hit her. Bloodstone braced himself then swung his gauntleted fist and smashed it into a shower of frigid dust.

But he didn't give the Student Police the chance to attack again and charged before flinging himself at Kuyou. The captain was ready for him and grappled with Bloodstone for a second before suddenly exploding into flame again. Bloodstone wasn't deterred and punched at the flames with both hands, but gasped in surprise as something bit down on his fists. The sheet of flames faded and revealed Kuyou's true form; a Yoko, a giant fox-like monster with four tails wreathed in flames.

"No!" Moka screamed and grabbed Bloodstone from behind. Then, seeming to grin, Kuyou tackled Bloodstone through the roof of the dungeon in a deafening blast of sound and fire.

* * *

Air rushed past the two vampires for what seemed like forever, and for a second Moka wondered if the impact had killed them and they were passing over to the afterlife until they came to a bone-jarring stop a second later, Bloodstone having twisted underneath in midair so he'd hid the ground first. She looked down at him, unable to think, talk or breathe.

Then Kuyou came crashing down nearby, the flames covering his body seeming even brighter than before. "You're just making things even better for me, don't you realize?" the fox creature said gloatingly. "Fighting back against the campus peacekeepers at a school for young monsters, you **must** be here to slaughter our children!"

Bloodstone didn't reply. He wasn't going to get involved in banter with Kuyou; the fox might be taking too much time to enjoy this, but he was powerful enough to still be a major threat. He started to let his consciousness fade and the instincts of his true vampire nature take over, when he felt Moka seize his arm and press it against her throat.

"What are you doing?!" he demanded.

"I'm not letting you do this by yourself," she said, then pressed his hand hard against her Rosario. There was a rush of electricity that flung them apart and Moka's scream filled the air.

There was no time to waste. This entire experiment of sending him away to school had failed. There was no point in letting Moka be hurt and dragged down with Nigeki when the dust settled on this. He let Bloodstone, the primal hunter, take over completely, eyes turning a glistening yellow as he got up to face the Captain of the Student Police.

"After all that, nothing to say?" Kuyou challenged. Bloodstone didn't. He just rushed his enemy, the curved blades at his elbows flashing out to their full length. Kuyou flipped his tails and sent a barrage of burning spears at Bloodstone, who just raised his arms in front of him deflecting on the metal and blades in front of him, only staggering for a minute as two gouged his leg before continuing his charge.

Kuyou's canine face looked startled for a second before Bloodstone grabbed him and hauled him into the air. Kuyou growled and the flames around his body roared even higher, licking at Bloodstone's arms and body, but the vampire just roared in rage before throwing his opponent into the air, then jumping after him and slashing against Kuyou's side with his bladed gauntlet and knocking him back to earth with a vicious midair kick.

The fiery fox gasped in surprise as he recovered his senses and got up again, looking for his opponent. But Bloodstone seemed to have vanished into the darkness of night. Suddenly he spotted a hint of movement behind a hunk of rubble from the wall of the building. Kuyou snarled and blasted a fireball at it that erupted upward in a giant explosion, and out of it Bloodstone came jumping. He came down in a powerful flying kick, his outstretched foot gathering a red glow as he came down. Kuyou breathed a tornado of fire from his mouth up at Bloodstone, pushing back against him and slowing Bloodstone as he came down, scorching at Bloodstone's armor.

But suddenly another figure ran out of the darkness and delivered a roundhouse kick to the fox's side. His attack faltered for just a second, and in that second Bloodstone came crashing down and landed his kick right between Kuyou's shoulders. An explosion of red light erupted and when it cleared Bloodstone and Kuyou were grappling while snarling at each other like beasts. Bloodstone's armor was charred and cracking around him, but even as the fire around Kuyou roared hotter in anger and his gauntlets started to turn red from the heat he refused to back way.

And despite the roaring flames again a flying kick came out of nowhere and struck Kuyou in the back while he was busy trying to break away from Bloodstone. It was Moka, the true wild, threatening vampire. Kuyou turned and snapped angrily at her only to receive a hard kick across the face just before Bloodstone took advantage of his distraction and slashed across his body.

All of a sudden Kuyou whirled around, snarling in rage and blasting both vampires back with a wave of fire. Moka cried out as she went down, the only noise the savage Bloodstone made being the crash from his impact, fires burning all over his armor and pieces of the plating cracking off from his chest and arms.

But again he got up and ran after Kuyou who dodged back and forth easily avoiding Bloodstone's punches that shattered the ground. "A vampire who's been taken in by a Kamen Rider," he growled with amusement. "Oh, this is a day that will live in infamy!"

Moka wordlessly closed in and launched a scissor-kick at Kuyou's jaw but he ducked under it before lunging at Bloodstone, catching the armored vampire's arm in his mouth and flinging him aside to crash into a boulder and split it in half. Before Kuyou had the chance to press his attack, though, again he was attacked from the side by something covered in blue and white fur in the shape of a wheel. He fell to the ground with an annoyed ground from the battering and looked up to see who his new attacker was.

"Ancient history, huh?" Felicia called mockingly. "Seems like my ears still work pretty good for such an old lady!"

"You're a spring chicken compared to me," Toriel said, fire dancing in her hands too, although looking uncertain what good it would do against an enemy like this. She turned back to Kuyou and warned, "Stop this, young man, and no one needs to be hurt."

"Like **you** , old lady?" Kuyou scoffed and launched a fireball from the tip of one tail. Toriel easily raised a wall of flame in front of her and Kuyou's fireball sputtered out inside it. Bloodstone dragged himself up on the edge of the boulder he'd hit, a part of him seething at what Toriel had been called.

"Try that again and you'll get you the spanking you deserve," Toriel warned Kuyou.

Kuyou just laughed. "You think I'm afraid of the faculty either?! You're nothing to me, **and** you're aiding a monster killer who's infiltrated the campus! You're just making me an even bigger hero!"

Felicia sighed wistfully. "Ah, to be young again. To have everything figured out already."

"You had that too, huh?" Toriel asked. "I thought I was the only one."

"Are you two going to talk like a couple old ladies or are you going to worry about beating the enemy?" Moka snapped at them. As if out of nowhere Bloodstone appeared behind her.

"Watch your mouth," he growled at her. Moka's face tightened in silent irritation.

Kyou sighed at the assembled group facing him down, then grinned. "It looks like I'll have to make this extra spectacular. Oh well," he said, then he started to glow. Not burn as before, but emit a dazzling white light. Bloodstone and Moka launched themselves into the heart of the light but something grabbed them both by the neck before they could hit Kuyou.

Again he'd changed, this time into a humanoid form wreathed in soft blue flames, vulpine ears poking through his long blond hair and a triumphant smile on his face. Four tails, now made of pure blue fire, extended out from his back.

"Vampires, aristocracy of the night," he grinned. "Looks like you've been on top so long you think there's nobody around who can knock you off your little perch. Let me correct that for you!"

He threw them away from him and launched a pair of fireballs after them that flew together into one massive ball and exploded in the air just behind them, flinging the two vampires to the ground like ragdolls. Kuyou jumped through the air and landed on their backs, his body burning brighter and hotter every second. Moka cried out by rolled over and kicked Kuyou's leg off her, and Bloodstone rolled into a crouch and rushed Kuyou slashing repeatedly with his blades but the fiery monster danced out of the way half a second too quickly each time.

Suddenly Kuyou pressed his hand against Bloodstone's chest and a deafening explosion ripped from his palm and blew the armored vampire away. Bloodstone arced through the air and crashed at Toriel and Felicia's feet, a gaping hole burnt in his chest armor and a patch of red, scorched skin visible underneath. Moka threw a flurry of kicks at Kuyou, but he stood still just absorbing the blows for a second before grabbing her by the leg and tossing her away to land beside Bloodstone.

Toriel let out a squeak of alarm at the sight of Bloodstone's injury but turned to face Kuyou, a fire of her own burning in her eyes. " **Stop this** ," she said warningly. "Would we have to hide from people like the real Kamen Riders if it wasn't for monsters like you?"

"You know what, you've set me straight. From now on, I'll make sure to set a good, peaceful example so humans like that can just rush in and wipe us all out!" Kuyou roared. The blue flame around his body grew brighter and a column of it formed around him then spread out in a wave in all directions.

Toriel blasted at it with all her might and Felicia rolled into a ball and sped at it, trying to crash through, but Kuyou's wave kept coming and slammed into them both knocking them down. Bloodstone finally staggered to his feet, the light in his eyes turning brighter and angrier. He planted his feet and held out his hands in front of him to catch the wave Kuyou had created.

It slammed into him like a wrecking ball, and a horrific surge of pain ripped through Bloodstone's body from his hands down to his feet. His body quivered but he held his ground and pushed back. One step. Then another. He screamed out as his hands started to burn through his gauntlets but still he pushed back against the wave. Finally he screamed and shoved it with all his strength and the wave cracked and then seemed to shatter, flying into the sky and fading from sight.

"What?" gasped a stupefied Kuyou.

"You think you're so powerful, you think you're a hunter or something?!" Bloodstone roared. "I'll show you power! The power of the people who dragged me back from darkness!"

He brought back one still-smoldering fist and his belt called, **"Magnum Vermillion!"** Then Bloodstone swung his fist and a blast of red light flowed from it that grew taller and wider as it flew toward Kuyou, who hastily fired back with a ray of his blue flames. The two attacks pushed back and forth for a minute, but sweat started to form on Kuyou's brow and hiss off as steam as soon as they touched the seething energy covering his body.

Bloodstone snarled as Nigeki slipped back into control and the lights in his mask dimmed, gathering all the frustration of this battle and his futile time at this school, knowing it was all over now in spite of all the friends he'd managed to make. His beam surged forward from the intensity of his rage and Kuyou let out one last strangled cry of surprise and panic before being engulfed. Bloodstone's blast shot past until it had gone past the cliff at the edge of the forest and disappeared over the blood-red ocean.

* * *

He stood over Kuyou's body, unmoving but merely unconscious. With a sigh of exhaustion Bloodstone released his armor but unlike usual it fell away in brittle chips instead of spraying away as liquid. The arm that had fired his final attack was totally uncovered by the force of the beam already, and the skin underneath reddened from the heat.

Nigeki slumped against one of the dead trees and sighed heavily, totally spent from the battle even with all the blood his friends had let him take.

His friends. They'd risked a fight with the Student Police to come and collect him, then given him their very blood to let him fight back against the Tear inside him. Even if Nigeki had absolutely failed to stay out of trouble, he'd managed to find some pretty great people here.

Suddenly Nigeki's instincts screamed a warning, and even as tired as he was he looked up to see Moka looming over him. Her expression was neutral, but even in the shape he was in he could tell her cold gazing was studying him.

"What is it?" he asked to break the silence. She replied by plucking out the Rosario still clutched in his hand, the one that had shot off his final attack, and wordlessly attached it to her choker again.

She shimmered and after a second the gentle pink-haired Moka was kneeling by his side, giving him a concerned look. "Are you okay?" she asked quietly, as if it was a stupid question.  
"I don't know," Nigeki replied, but forced a smile. "I can't really feel anything right now."

"That's not much of a surprise," Toriel observed as she and Felicia limped over. "I've never seen a monster give off so much power as that last trick of yours."

"Yeah, well, enjoy it while you can," Nigeki muttered. "Tomorrow I'm getting kicked out of school."

"For what?" Felicia asked. "That guy wasn't protecting the students."

Nigeki sighed and rested his forehead against his knees. "My family still didn't say anything about the Tear in me or how I was keeping it under control. They never would've let me in if we had."

One side of Felicia's mouth turned up in a faint smirk. "We'll see."

Moka gave her friend a worried look and found the courage to place her hand on his shoulder. "But why did you change? Did they hurt you that much?" she asked.

"No," Nigeki replied. "I think it was more because I got knocked out without taking my pill to make sure I don't dream. If I have nightmares the Tear just eats it right up, and there's nothing I can do to stop it from taking over unless I wake up in time. ="

Toriel gaped at him for a second before kneeling in front of the young vampire herself. "You can't dream when you sleep? You poor, poor thing," she said and cupped his face supportively in her soft, fuzzy hands while she tried to give him a reassuring smile. His vision around Toriel seemed to blur, and somehow Nigeki thought it had nothing to do with his exhaustion.

"OHMYGODTHEREYOUAREAREYOUOKAY?!" someone yelled before Nigeki felt someone slam into him and wrap around his neck, choking the breath from his lungs. As the world blurred in and out from lack of oxygen he saw Felicia grinning as she held up her phone and snapped a picture.

This was what his life had become.


	11. Chapter 11: And the Dust Shall Settle

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 11 – And the Dust Shall Settle**

 **She's probably never going to read this, and what I have in mind for Toriel would just infuriate her, but this one goes out to PCT Paws for being…everything.**

Nigeki spent the next week wrapped in bandages and expecting any minute to have someone show up and escort him off campus. He went to his classes and his club as he always had, but most of the other kids hadn't paid any attention to him before. Now everyone seemed to notice him coming and go out of their way to keep from getting too close to him. Someone had even snuck into the theatre and found the poster art the Drama Club had been working on for their production, and painted Bloodstone's mask over the Phantom's face and a severed head dangling from his outstretched hand by its hair.

Somebody on the Student Police had let it slip that he was the one at the center of all the hell that had broken loose, evidently. One last act of defiance for having their racket ruined before being expelled, or worse. The friends who'd risked it all for Nigeki's sake had stayed by him, thankfully, sitting with him at lunch and coming by after classes to make sure he was doing all right. Not as many people picked up the latest edition of the school newspaper, though, no doubt thanks to the club's part in saving the "Kamen Rider" who had snuck onto campus.

Kurumu had said she was glad, for her part, since it meant she didn't have to work as hard and could devote her attention to more **pleasurable** pursuits. She hardly looked affected at all when Nigeki had told her he was probably being kicked out any time.

He was heading back to the dorms after another day when a tingle ran up the back of his neck and his senses snapped into sharper focus; his instincts were warning him he was being followed. But when he turned around expecting a fight he instead found himself looking into Centorea Shianus's languid blue eyes. Clutched in one hand she had a wicker basket with a few loaves of homemade bread sticking out of it and in the other a bushel of carrots.

"Oh, hello!" she said, blushing slightly. "I, erm, I brought you these." She held out the objects in her hands. "I wasn't really sure what I could get that would be appropriate for a vampire, though."

"Thank you," Nigeki said, although he failed to keep a trace of suspicion out of his voice. "Would you…care to come in and have some tea?"

"Tea! I should've thought of that!" Centorea replied, blushing harder. After a second she nodded her agreement. She stepped in and took a seat at Nigeki's table while he silently brewed a pot, fidgeting anxiously as she waited.

"Is…everything okay?" Nigeki asked after second. "Look, I know I don't have the best reputation after that thing with the Student P…Security Committee, but I really didn't come here to kill anybody. To learn not to, really."

Centorea nodded. "Well, that's kind of why I came here, too. To learn. To your room, I mean, not the school. Not that I'm coming to your room for the reason that probably implies. Because I'm not! I'm here to—" Centorea stopped and looked away, flustered.

"About what I'm really doing here, I bet?" Nigeki asked, gamely ignoring her embarrassing outburst, and set out a steaming cup in front of each of them. Centorea nodded. "Why? I thought the Security Committee was shut down. Didn't a bunch of them admit they'd been shaking down school clubs for protection money or something, so they could get the school to agree to send them somewhere safe from the 'Kamen Rider' who beat up their boss?"

"Yes, it has. Yes, they did," Centorea replied. "But I went down into that dungeon because I had to know the truth about you. What you were doing here if you **weren't** here to massacre the entire school. I heard they caught you when you were trying to sneak off campus and then transformed and attacked them."

Nigeki nodded and sipped his own tea, grimacing a little at the heat. "I wasn't reporting back to my secret bosses or anything."

"Why **were** you trying to sneak off campus, then?"

He sighed, but answered, "I thought the Security Committee would be coming for me after I beat one of their members, and I thought the best thing I could do for me and my friends was just leave so they didn't get in more trouble. Looking like a Kamen Rider would've been bad enough, but you saw what I turned into down there, right? The Tear?"

"Yes, I remember. You almost tore down the building."

" **It wasn't me** ," Nigeki said darkly, then realized Centorea was gaping at him. "Um, I mean, it's something I've been fighting to control my whole life. You saw what happens if it takes over. That wouldn't have really helped my case that I'm not here to kill anybody."

She reached across the table and took his hand. "I'm sorry to hear that," she said. Nigeki looked down at her hand, she looked down at it too and it seemed to dawn on her what she was doing because she yanked her arm back across the table and rested both hands against her lap, her cheeks burning.

"It's okay," Nigeki sighed, then managed a smile. "It's been great, but maybe my being here's done what it's supposed to, and my family's got what they need. Maybe it's okay for me to leave now."

Centorea knitted her brow. "Why would you have to leave? You said yourself you didn't come here to kill anyone, and you helped break up a gang of thugs."

"Tell that to the girl who had the art she worked on for weeks ruined just because she's in the same club as me."

"Still sounds like a good deed to me, and a shame to let it end there."

Nigeki raised an eyebrow. "Now you're here to give me a pep talk?"

"A knight must be compassionate and helpful to those in need," Centorea replied matter-of-factly.

"And you're a knight," he replied. She nodded solemnly. "Well, thanks for coming over, Centorea."

"…why don't you call me Cerea?" she said gently. "All my friends do."

Nigeki took a second to reply but nodded and smiled faintly. "I'm flattered you'd like me to think of you that way."

She nodded and smiled, slipping her hand over his again. Nigeki looked down at what she was doing, but this time she didn't pull back.

* * *

"Thank you for attending, everyone!" the Headmaster called out to the Youkai Academy faculty, who had taken over the school theatre for an important meeting. A few looked a bit put off being addressed by a man in billowing white robes with an obscured face, but he went on regardless. "It goes without saying that there has been…a period of great change at this school very recently. The Security Committee has been exposed as being unfit for their duties, and while this is indeed something to be grateful for, it does mean we have a school full of wild teenage monsters with limited supervision.

"This is a void that must be filled quickly, and after what has been revealed about the previous people to hold the post, it will most likely not be easy for them to exert influence over the student body. We must find someone who is strong, persistent, capable of standing their ground, and yet also someone who will not be corrup—" He stopped as he saw one of the teachers had raised her hand, a short plump woman with glasses and a large overbite whose blonde hair had been swept into spikes in the back. "Er, yes, Alphys?"

"I know the perfect person!" she gushed, grinning and her fists quivering in excitement.

The Headmaster regarded her quietly for a second, apparently unprepared for this, but Alphys didn't shrink under his scrutiny, continuing to grin with barely restrained glee. Finally he replied, "Right, speak to me after the assembly, would you please? Erm, moving onto other matters, I'd like to introduce everyone to Youkai Academy's new groundskeeper."

A hefty man with a thick blond beard came up on stage beside the Headmaster and smiled at the rest of the faculty.

Toriel's jaw dropped. "DAMNATION!" she shouted, then froze as she realized the entire faculty was staring at her, especially the groundskeeper who had a hopeful smile peeking out from the depths of his beard.

* * *

Centorea had left with a smile on her face a while before, and Nigeki had started on his studies for the night, but it wasn't long before his head started to feel stuffy and he leaned out his window for some fresh air.

As he did, he spotted Toriel walking past, her soft features twisted into a scowl of anger as a hefty man with a thick blond beard and wearing a hideous pink and white Hawaiian shirt followed by her, darting from one side to the other, apparently trying to get her attention.

As fast he could go Nigeki was out his room and down the stairs, feeling an overwhelming urge to protect her even as he remembered she hardly needed it. When he came out the front doors Toriel spotted him and her expression of anger turned to relief.

"What a lucky coincidence!" she exclaimed. " **There** you are, Hitoribo-san! Looks like we'll have to put off the **reunion** until later!" she went on with a glare over her shoulder. The man who'd been trying to talk to her sighed and turned and went the other way, looking defeated.

Nigeki stared after him, suddenly not feeling so sure of himself, but Toriel took his arm and led him away. "Thank you for coming when you did," she whispered.

"Um, Mrs. Dreemurr…you must know that guy, right? Why were you so mad at him?" Nigeki couldn't help asking.

"He killed people," Toriel replied. "It was for the greater good, but there was a better way, and he was too scared to take it. Now, shall we walk a bit to complete illusion, child?" She started walking without getting his reply, but as she did her expression softened until she was smiling gently again. Despite that self-denigrating remark of hers before about her age from before, Nigeki couldn't take his eyes off her when she looked like that. "So, child, how are you recovering from your ordeal?" she asked pleasantly.

"Pretty well, I think," Nigeki said. "The one arm's still pretty sore, though." He held up his reddened hand for her inspection.

"I'm not surprised, with the power you threw with it. You let that boy have it," she said, then shut her eyes and sighed in pleasure. "Have you ever really stopped and appreciated the sun and the fresh air?"

Nigeki thought for a second but shook his head. "I was just glad to get off the estate and come here."

"Well, I lived in caves all my life. Getting out of that was like coming to a whole other world," she sighed happily once again. "I know this world has its problems too, but it's probably better than being stuck in your family's house your entire life, isn't it?"

"It has been," Nigeki admitted. "I have actual, honest-to-god friends here…some of them want to move to the next stage a little too fast for me, but that's probably better than being at home. Everybody hates me there." Even with all the fights he'd gotten into and some of the beatings he'd taken, at least here he and the other monsters he'd met were doing things on their own terms.

But another thought occurred to him. "Mrs. Dreemur? Should we really be walking like this?" he indicated their intertwined arms with his free hand. "It kind of looks like we're on a date or something."

"Oh?" she asked. Nigeki didn't repl. His attention had been seized by someone crossing their path a few dozen yards in front of them. He was a tall, distinguished-looking man with a curly brown but graying beard, wearing an elegant black suit. His stride was long and confident, but his eyelids drooped slightly, betraying a deeply-rooted exhaustion. He walked up the steps of the main building and disappeared inside.

"Child?" Toriel asked, a little uncertainly. "Do you know that man?"

"He's my father."

* * *

The nervous secretary brought in a third cup of coffee, straight black, as the imposing vampire had told her and collected his previous cup and left without saying a word. He'd tried to take down some of the books lining the walls to pass the time while he waited only to find they were actually nailed down. How pretentious. As each minute passed he was more and more sure that his host was keeping him waiting just to toy with him.

Finally the door clicked, and in strode the Headmaster, a slightly smirking look on his face. "Thank you for your patience! There've been some severe shortfalls with campus security lately that I absolutely cannot be putting off," he said.

"As if you need to tell me about that," his guest said gruffly. "Those thugs you supposedly had keeping this school of yours safe almost executed him."

"True, but that doesn't mean I would be pointing fingers in your place, Takeshi. You were hardly honest with my people when your son was enrolled in my school."

The vampire clenched his teeth. "Damn it, Mikogami! You think because you're one of those 'Dark Lords' your concerns matter for more? You have no idea what—"

But the Headmaster whirled toward him and interrupted. "After seeing your son's… **affliction** , I would say I have a fair idea that something is coming, yes. Something very big, even if I do not know exactly what yet. But I didn't make time for this visit to rake you over the coals for sending your son here without informing me what he's suffering from. I am willing to let him continue studying here in the company of the students whose experience he's bettered through his contact with them. In exchange for having him report directly to me on matters of great importance to the future of our world."

Takeshi glowered at him. "Which you already decided before I came, I'm sure."

The Headmaster shrugged. "These…Tears? Tears of yours are not the only thing that are becoming a mounting threat, Takeshi. We must be prepared. And besides, this way your son can make a positive difference at the same time he's away from home so to make sure he doesn't impede your information-gathering for these Tears."

Takeshi exploded. "That's not the point! Whatever's wrong with him, Nigeki is my son! He's a person with the right to decide his future, not some expendable errand boy you can just throw away if he doesn't come back one day!"

"Takeshi…every man is a man's son. And every man has a part to play in the days ahead. Your son's is certainly not to simply be out of the way while you prepare to present your findings."

* * *

"…so, what do you think you'll study at university?" Toriel asked.

"I have no idea. I'm just barely being allowed to go to a regular school," Nigeki replied.

"Still, you must've thought about what you'd **like** to study when you go," she pressed.

After finding out Nigeki's father was on campus, and moreover that he hadn't been expecting a visit, Toriel insisted on waiting outside the main building until he came back out. Anytime Nigeki had tried to get up and go Toriel had firmly taken his arm and sat him back down to continue their conversation, and Nigeki had found himself unable to resist.

Somewhat predictably it hadn't been long before they'd been seen and joined, though. "Well… **I'd** like to take social studies," said a lightly blushing Moka as Yukari sat beside her and clung to her arm. Nigeki had a feeling they weren't the only ones around, but at least they were the only ones he could **see**. "I'd really like it if I could go around the world and learn about all the different monsters and humans and their cultures, and see how we can start making the world a lot friendlier."

"That's a big goal," Toriel replied. "Myself and the others are trying something similar, but we've got a lot to learn about your world before we can really move forward." But she smiled at the vampiress, who blushed even harder. "Perhaps you can learn all that and be the one to teach **us**."

Nigeki smiled over at her. "That's pretty awesome, Moka."

"Do you think maybe I could talk you into coming with me?" she blurted out in reply, then clapped a hand over her mouth as she realized what she'd said. Yukari grinned.

"How about we see how well we do in on school before we take on the whole world, huh?" Nigeki answered her.

"Here he comes," Toriel whispered, interrupting them. Indeed, Takeshi Hitoribo had come out the doors but stopped when he saw who was among the group sitting in front of him. Toriel stood up, dragging Nigeki by the arm at her side. "Hello, sir! We're so glad you found the time to come visit the school!" She placed her hand on Nigeki's back and gave him a gentle prod in his father's direction.

Nigeki and his father looked across at each other for a while without saying anything, but eventually Nigeki broke the silence. "Hello, father. Kind of surprised to see you visiting my school."  
"You shouldn't be. Not if what I've heard about you getting into fights is true," his father replied slowly.

"It wasn't—" Moka started to rush to her friend's defense, but Nigeki held up a hand to stop her.

"Yeah, things didn't exactly go to plan. But I made some friends here dad, that's what you wanted. And sometimes they got in trouble and I helped out, and eventually that's what happened. And when I got in trouble they came and helped me out."

Takeshi sighed and looked away. Nigeki spoke up before this could get any deeper. "How's the project doing? You about ready to start talking to the clan heads about the Tears yet?" he asked.

His father sighed and shook his head. "It seems like they're hiding out from us. A number of locations we thought were nesting grounds have suddenly proven completely empty. We still have a ways to go yet."

"So I guess that means you need Nigeki to stay here at school for a long time still," Yukari said with a coy smirk on her young face.

Takeshi raised a bushy eyebrow. "Pretty quick, this one."

"Well, she skipped a bunch of grades," Nigeki explained. Yukari grinned proudly and hung onto Moka's arm even tighter.

"How's mom?" Nigeki asked suddenly.

His father shook his head sadly. "I don't really know. It's been a week since she left her room or even answered her door."

Nigeki nodded. "I'm sorry."

"Me too," Takeshi said, then started down the stairs, past Nigeki and his friends. When he was a few yards away, Nigeki called out.

"Hey, dad? It was good seeing you, even if you didn't come to see me."

Takeshi nodded, then said, "Hopefully soon I can."

* * *

As he opened the door to his room Nigeki was unsurprised to see a note had been pushed under his door. Expecting it to tell him when he was supposed to be cleared out, he instead stood in the doorway for a minute trying to understand the terrible handwriting on it, eventually gleaning that someone named Chopper Rikishi was challenging him to a fight, wanting the one who'd beaten the captain of the Student Police to prove himself.

Was this all anyone understood? Who was stronger than who? Nigeki sighed in exasperation before he crumpled up the note and threw it into his trashcan as hard as he could. He turned on his computer, planning to send out a few emails then get to bed early, but stopped when he saw he had 57 notices on Frightbook.

When had he signed up for Frightbook?

As soon as he opened the window he was assaulted with pictures of monster kids at parties and sports games. Nigeki sighed in irritation and was about to close the window again when he recognized someone in them. It was his cousin Laura, the exchange student who lived in America, and she was dancing with a brawny boy with soft brown fur all over his body and fangs peeking over his lip. Another picture showed her in a black cheerleader's uniform, cradled in the arms of the same boy who was wearing a basketball uniform and holding a trophy while keeping her up. Their school sure looked a lot more lenient about being in their true forms.

In the middle of all the pictures she'd put up a message too. "Haven't heard from you Nigeki wanted to know if you like your school! My friends are the coolest hope yours are too let me know sometime ok XD!"

Nigeki thought for a minute, then hooked up his phone to the computer and downloaded that picture Felicia had taken of their little group as a joke. Or at least he'd thought that at the time.

Toriel was examining the burns on his chest and arms, while Kurumu had come flying out of the side of the photo, black wings fully extended and tears of joy streaming from her eyes, and had her arms wrapped around in his neck in relief, but from the distressed look on his face with how suddenly she'd grabbed him it looked more like she had him caught in a headlock. It had felt like it, too.

Yukari was running up screaming in rage at Kurumu and brandishing her wand, and the wash tub she'd clobbered Kurumu and Nigeki with could already be seen at the top of the photo. A frantic-looking Moka was running after her, trying to keep the young witch from doing any more damage. Mizore stood off to one side, her face totally impassive and ice kunai freezing into existence between her fingers.

Near her Meroune sat with a placid smile on her lips on her magic seashell in her lap, and beside her was Centorea, watching everything else going on with a look of confusion on her dirt-smeared but still lovely face.

He uploaded it, and smiled to himself as he added the message. "My friends are pretty cool too."

After a minute he noticed a second, bigger envelope had been slipped under his door.

* * *

When classes ended the next day Nigeki got one of his travel bags out of his room and made his way to the bus stop at the edge of campus again, but before he was even close he already saw someone was waiting for him. He smiled softly as he made his way up to them and sat down next to the scarecrow to wait for a ride off campus.

"Hi, Mizore," he said to the snow girl. "Kind of unusual for you to be out in the open like that."

"It's easier to get a ride," she said in her usual offhand manner.

"So you're going somewhere too, huh?"

"Yep."

Nigeki arched an eyebrow. "Oh yeah? Where?"

"I don't know. Where are we going?" she asked him.

Nigeki eyed her for a moment, but as usual she didn't flinch. Finally he took a brown envelope out of his bag and got a large photograph out of it. It showed two young girls, not even ten years old, one with close-cropped black hair and a red headband on, and the other girl, looking even younger, had a soft face with a wild smile on her face and her deep brown hair was pulled back into a pair of ragged-looking braids.

"Are those your little sisters?" Mizore asked, remembering from his letter from home she'd playfully taken from him and read.

"Yes, they are," Nigeki answered. "Apparently I'm being allowed to stay at this school after all, if I run an errand and go find a witch named Oyakawa for them. But according to them my sisters have been spotted too, and I'm being excused from classes for a little while so I can go find them too."

Mizore nodded. "Sounds really important. But you get to stay in school, then." She flashed one of her faint but adorable smiles at the thought.

A minute later a school bus rumbled out of the nearby tunnel, a grinning figure with gleaming eyes and a stubby cigar clutched in his lips at the wheel. It stopped in front of them and he swung the lever to open the door. "You the kid I'm supposed to give a lift, huh?" the driver grinned, his teeth seeming a little too sharp.

"Well, **I** am," Nigeki started to reply. "But…"

"Then you better get in before the teachers find out your girlfriend snuck out to come with you!" the driver replied and waved them on. Nigeki looked back at Mizore, and he swore she was blushing a little as she got on behind him. He knew he shouldn't have been pushing his luck after being allowed to stay at Youkai Academy, but Mizore had been willing to fight through the Student Police to get to him, and then was the first to step forward and offer her blood when it was the only thing that could save him from his inner darkness. There was no way he could push her out.

He took a seat against the window and wasn't surprised when Mizore took the one next to him. She set a bag he hadn't noticed on the floor in front of her feet. Nigeki realized she'd probably watched him pack through his window last night, and somehow he expected nothing less at this point.

"You, um, need a book or something?" Nigeki offered as he got one out for himself.

"No thanks," Mizore said with her soft smile. "I think I'll just enjoy the view."

Even he didn't have to figure out what that meant.

* * *

As the day ended and the students finished dispersing, the faculty of Youkai Academy wasn't too pleased to be called to a second meeting on the same day, but found themselves baffled by what they'd been called to examine.

"Can anyone tell me what this is?" the Headmaster demanded, pointing to the back wall of the school building.

Miss Nekonome lifted her hand. "It looks like graffiti, sir," she answered timidly.

"Yes, it does. But does that **look** like paint to you?"

"Sir, I think I recognize it," Alphys stated nervously, eyes glancing around furtively. How many dark secrets would she be asked to keep? "Tori?"

Toriel nodded, "I think you may be right. But I hope you aren't."

Alphys nodded back. "Me too." The rest of the faculty stared at the message, wondering what the two of them knew about it that the rest of them didn't. Alphys was glad, as nobody was looking at her and her awestruck expression. She'd heard nothing about doing this from him.

Written on the back of the building in what looked more like a thin layer of gray metal than paint was a simple but bizarre message.

BEWARE OF THE MAN WHO SPEAKS IN HANDS.

* * *

 **Well, that wraps up the first wave of this fic. Sorry it took so long, but the muse hasn't sung much in the last couple months and I've been trying to make more of an effort to honor commitments elsewhere. Still, here it is and hope it was enjoyable. If not, I'd still like to hear why.**

 **On that note, before anyone says it, I agree, I could've devoted more attention to fleshing out the relations with some of the supporting characters. Made the cast too big a little too early, maybe, but I wanted to show him touching a lot of lives, not just the girls from the first manga. Hopefully that can be fixed some in the days ahead.**

 **Next chapter, AGES begins.**


	12. (Book 2: AGES) Chapter 12: Faces

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Book 2: AGES of Darkness**

 **Chapter 12 – Faces in the Crowd**

The sky seemed to go dark above Moka, Kurumu and Yukari's heads. They covered their ears as an ear-splitting shriek washed over them, rattling the windows in the classroom building nearby and sending crows flying up away from the stunted trees around the edge of campus.

"WHERE ISSSSSS HEEEEEEEEEEEEEE?!"

Towering over the girls was a thick-limbed troll, his grotesque muscles lined with throbbing veins and knife-like teeth sticking up from his rock-hard lower jaw. "You were there with him!" he roared at the girls, raising his enormous fists and bringing them down on the ground leaving craters two feet deep. "You helped him fight! You're his friends! You know where he is!"

Kurumu spread her dark wings and took off, fingernails flashing out into hot pink foot-long claws. "Even if he was around, why do you think he'd have nothing better to do than get in a fight with a big sweaty loser like you?!" she called tauntingly.

The troll roared and wrenched a tree, roots and all, out of the ground and chucked it at her, but Kurumu darted out of the way and it went sailing past her, crashing into something noisily out of sight.

"Because I challenged him!" the troll screamed up at her. "If he fought the leader of the Student Police, why is he too scared to fight someone like Chopper Rikiishi?!"

Moka glared up at the troll. "Maybe he doesn't care about something so stupid!"

For a second Chopper Rikiishi stopped his bellowing and looked down at Moka. "…stupid?"

She started in surprise, not sure how to follow up on what she just said. She stammered out, "W-w-well yeah…why does he have to fight you to prove something? Aren't we supposed to be learning not to do stuff like that?"

Rikiishi's face twisted with anger and Moka felt an urge to turn and run before he had a chance to lash out at her. He roared suddenly and threw his huge arms into the air, almost blowing Moka off her feet with the force of his voice. "BECAUSE I HAVE TO BE STRONG!" Rikiishi thundered. "BECAUSE WE **ALL** HAVE TO BE! WE HAVE TO BE **READY!** " He swept his massive arms, digging trenches out of the ground with his fists, and Moka squeaked and ran for all she was worth out of his way just before she would've been hit by one. But then he got to his massive feet and chased after Moka, swiping at her and trying to grab her.

"WE HAVE TO BE READY WHEN THE HUMANS ATTACK US!" Chopper screamed.

All of a sudden Yukari appeared in midair in front of him, brandishing her toy-like wand. A cloud of cards blasted from the tip into his face, knocking Chopper off-balance for a second and a brass wash tub bounced off his head, dazing him. Then a second clanged as it slammed into his head, and he staggered back drunkenly. A third tub slammed right into his forehead over his eyes, and Rikiishi reeled. Kurumu swooped in and raked her claws across his chest. He finally fell and sank ten inches into the ground as he landed.

"Not bad," Yukari smiled up at Kurumu, who grinned and made the peace sign with her gigantically long fingernails. "For a girl with more boobs than brains, anyway," the witch added with a smirk.

"Why you little—" Kurumu yelled and swooped at Yukari, long fingernails reaching out for the witch's head.

"Eeep!" Yukari squealed and hid behind Moka, but before Kurumu could have her revenge Rikiishi suddenly rolled over and swatted her away with his massive hand without even seeming to realize it. Glaring at them though squinting eyes thanks to where Yukari's last tub had hit him, he grabbed Moka by the legs and hoisted her into the air.

"WHERE'S THAT BOYFRIEND OF YOURS?!" he howled at the top of his lungs.

"Boyfriend?" was the only reply Moka managed.

Kurumu clenched her fist in anger at hearing that question directed at Moka, not realizing that meant raking her own extended fingernails over her own chest and shoulder until it was too late. "OWW!"

Rikiishi snarled at Moka and then bellowed, "YES! WHERE IS HE?! WHY DIDN'T HE ANSWER MY CHALLENGE?! IS HE AFRAID?"

"What makes you think Nigeki has nothing better to do than get into a pointless fight with a _bully_?" Moka heard herself retort.

"A BULLY? IS THAT ALL YOU CAN SEE IN ME?!" Chopper screamed, almost deafening her.

Yukari aimed her wand. Kurumu went into another dive at Rikiishi's head.

But then a thundering sound filled the area, and it took a second to realize it wasn't Chopper screaming his frustration at them again. It was the sound of Moka smacking him on the cheek hard enough to jerk his giant head into his shoulder.

"Yes," Moka said with an angry frown. "If you're this obsessed with getting to fight someone, that's exactly what I see."

Yukari and Kurumu stopped in their tracks and exchanged an uneasy glance. When had _this_ Moka ever had the nerve to say something like that, let alone hit somebody? Let somebody as big as Chopper Rikiishi, who was holding her off the ground with just one hand?

But Chopper himself didn't answer her. Instead he suddenly dropped Moka and reeled backward, holding out a hand to catch himself against one of the many dead trees ringing the school. He shook his head to clear it of the cobwebs of the hit he'd just taken, then fixed Moka was a look of blinding hatred. He was getting to his full height to attack again…

"Is there a problem here?" asked a tall, lanky woman with a thick red ponytail and an eyepatch over her left eye. They hadn't noticed her coming with all the noise Chopper had been making, but how the hell could she be so calm about it?

The giant troll growled down at her. "Unless _you_ know where Nigeki Hitoribo is—"

"Never heard of him," she interrupted.

"…then you'd better butt out before you get hurt."

The next thing any of them knew the woman had grabbed Rikiishi around the waist, which looked absolutely impossible with her thin frame, and suplexed him, his head and two feet of his shoulders disappearing into the ground with a horrible crash. She rolled out from under Chopper, whose hand twitched for a second but then fell and stayed silent. She easily dragged him back out of the ground by his feet, and after she made sure Chopper was still breathing, she gave the girls a last indecipherable look before she walked away.

"Who the hell was that?" Kurumu asked as soon as the woman was far enough away not to hear.

"I can stop her, then we can interrogate her," Yukari suggested and started to brandish her wand to bring a wash tub down on her head, but Moka stopped the young witch with a shake of her head.

"No. She's really strong, and we shouldn't be getting into fights anyway, remember?" Moka said, surprising the other two after just finding the courage to hit someone like Chopper Rikiishi in the face. "Besides, I'm sure we'll find out who she is soon enough."

* * *

As the two of them rode the empty bus down a forest road, the setting sun's dark orange light flickering through the treetops, Nigeki got an urge to get up and stretch, but Mizore had fallen asleep leaning on him. And even though it was a weird sensation and he was trying to stand firm on not worrying about dating yet, he realized he didn't want to move away even more.

Instead he killed time flicking through social updates on his phone. Most of them were from cousin Laura, who seemed to be having a similar experience to his in that she was at school with other monsters her age for the first time. Unlike Nigeki, she hadn't been constantly getting into fights, at least.

Almost all of it was things she did with her friends, her boyfriend (the brown-furred basketball player who'd been holding her in his arms in the last picture she'd sent to Nigeki), and her cheerleading exploits.

One that caught his eye was of two girls waving to the camera, grinning. One was tall and green with a head like an alligator's, but she also a head of blonde hair twisted into pigtails, and pink lipstick on. The other one was short and chubby with purple fur, black hair with a blue streak and a cat-like face. The tag Laura had written underneath it was "they keep telling everyone their names really ARE Bratty and Catty". Nigeki's knowledge of American slang wasn't that great, but he was pretty sure he understood. Weren't those insults?

He scrolled down to another one she'd reposted from someone else. The picture showed Laura and one of her friends, a girl with green skin, zebra-striped hair and eyes with mismatched colors each hugging a strange cat-like creature with white fur but also thick black hair atop their heads, and wearing striped t-shirts. The one in Laura's arms appeared to be winking at the camera.

Behind them another girl with streaks of gold in her long black hair and wearing an outfit that looked like yellowed gauze bandages was running for her life from a tidal wave of those same cat-creatures.

Was striping their hair something American monster girls were really into?

The tag under the picture read "hOI! temmie am finist cooleg, nou mov unta HAH-skoo an cumpLEE AHchoo-kayshun! AL di grls lub TEM!"

In her repost underneath Laura added: "except cleo X3".

Cousin Laura had sent him another update, though, a personal one: a picture of the back wall of her school apparently, where someone had written the message "BEWARE OF THE MAN WHO SPEAKS IN HANDS," in perfectly even grey type, made in something that looked more like metal than paint.

According to the message she'd sent along with it someone had taken that before school officials suddenly painted the rest of the wall grey to cover it up. The letters could still just barely be made out through the paint, but two friends of hers had gotten detention and conferences with their parents for being caught just looking too closely at the wall.

What could a weird message like that mean, Nigeki wondered, especially if the people who ran the school were so desperate to keep anyone from finding out?

He was distracted from his deep thinking as Mizore leaned on him harder all of a sudden and curled her arm around his, smiling gently in her sleep. For a second he thought her eye flick open at him to see how he reacted, but he decided to take things one step at a time. He was doing a service to his people by finding this witch, and while he was doing it he had the chance to find his younger sisters who'd been missing for months.

That was enough for now.

* * *

An hour later the bus finally stopped next to a small seaside town. Mizore had seemed annoyed when Nigeki had woken her up and insisted it was time to get off, even with as stoic as she usually was. As they got off and walked into town she grabbed his hand, laced their fingers together and refused to let go. The cool of her touch felt surprisingly welcome, though, and he supposed that despite her being so forceful it was better than having to carry both of their luggage.

Still…

"Mizore, you don't have to hold so tight. Are you afraid I'll run away or something?"

"Just making sure no-one gets the wrong idea about us," she answered casually.

"What wrong idea?" he asked, and Mizore looked at him quizzically. "Look, you're pretty and everything—," he said, and she blushed. "But I must've said ten times already I'm not dating. I have to find my sisters, and that's plenty, don't you think?"

She answered by giving his hand a squeeze and smiling around the stick of her lollipop, then saying, "No."

He sighed and just kept walking, getting a giggle of amusement from Mizore. But the sun was getting low after their long bus trip and he didn't see the good in dragging Mizore around in the dark trying to find the witch, let alone expecting the witch to be happy to see them when she _was_ found. He glanced around at places to stay the night, but also tried to think of how to keep Mizore from getting any ideas.

Then it seemed to jump out at him: a small restaurant with the name 'DAPHNE' written above the front window in metallic gold paint. Sitting in the window were a pair of signs, 'ROOM TO RENT' and another saying 'HELP WANTED', and underneath had been hastily written, 'URGENTLY!'.

"Why don't we go in there and see about some dinner?" Nigeki suggested. Mizore smiled and nodded, like she would've followed him anywhere. "Then maybe we can ask about a place to stay." A back room place seemed ideal; Nigeki had felt wrong bringing a bunch of money on this trip for some reason. It was like the distance from home, finally being allowed to be out on his own made him want to handle things on his own now. It sounded so idiotic, but instead of hiding he wanted to face the world, and without relying on his family's influence like he always had…

They went inside, and almost immediately a willowy girl in an antiquated black and white lace maid's dress stepped in front of them to greet them. "Welcome to Daphne!" she said graciously. "Would you care for a seat by the window?"

"I've been sitting by a window most of the day. I'd rather have something by the corner, if that's all right," Nigeki answered.

"Of course! Right this way, please," the girl smiled and turned to lead them past a few occupied tables, nobody sparing the two of them much attention as they went past. Despite what he'd told Mizore about holding off on dating, Nigeki found himself unable to look away from the waitress. She had long silvery hair setting off her slender build, and behind a pair of cute glasses were a pair of deep, shimmering eyes that were a light pink in color. She smiled more deeply as she noticed him looking more intently, but right then Mizore clung to his entire arm tightly, silently glaring frosty daggers at the girl.

As soon as she'd sat them down, someone called, "Excuse me! Can we get refills over here?"

"And over here!" a teenage girl sitting by the door with her friends added. "And could we see a dessert menu?"

The waitress sighed slightly and forced a smile before she turned around to hurry off and help the other customers. Nearly five minutes later when she finished rushing back and forth between the dining room and the kitchen and got back to Nigeki and Mizore, her feet shuffled and there were dark circles forming under her eyes Nigeki hadn't noticed before. "Now…what can I get you?" she asked.

"Actually, we saw the sign—," Nigeki started to say.

Her face erupted into a relieved smile and she immediately pointed at the kitchen door. "Talk to the owner. Just go right in. Please."

"Um, all right," Nigeki said and got up to do as she said, with Mizore getting up and grabbing his arm, shooting the waitress another sharp glare as she went. Nigeki pushed open the door to the kitchen like he'd been told and inside working over a wide grill was a lanky dark-haired man.

"Sorry, no diners in the kitchen! This is a controlled system!" he exclaimed.

Nigeki shook his head. "The girl outside told us to talk to you. We saw the sign—"

"Great!" the man said. "Look, thanks for the interest. Practically our whole wait staff quit a while ago, and we're a little more shorthanded than I thought we'd be with my nephew away at culinary school.  
"Oh? Why did they all quit?" Nigeki asked.

"They were all in love with my nephew but he picked the girl out there. She's my daughter, Takano" the chef answered, then whirled and faced the two young monsters with a smile. "Ryosuke Aoyama, owner and operator."

Nigeki held up a hand and shook his head. "Look, I think you're misunderstanding. We're only going to be here for a little while. We're trying to find someone, and we're looking for a place to stay while we're here. That's it."

Ryosuke's face fell, but Mizore leaned over and whispered to Nigeki. "Why don't we stay for a little while? They look they really do need the help. Besides, maybe he'll let me keep the uniform after we're done."

He looked at Mizore in surprise, and she grinned subtly back at him, and before he knew it he was imagining her in a long, lacy black dress like the girl out front had been wearing. She seemed to see it in his eyes and her cheeks turned pink even as he watched.

Maybe it _wasn't_ such a bad idea. They looked like they really did need the help. Besides, he tried to reason, wasn't he away from home to try to broaden his horizons and keep the Tear under control by experiencing life? "Well, for a little while, I guess."

Ryosuke sighed in relief and Mizore slipped an arm around Nigeki's shoulders and kissed his cheek. Had this been a good decision after all…?

* * *

School had ended the next day, and with no other maniacs attacking her trying to find out where Nigeki had gone, Moka gently flicked another page in her book. She smiled and gave off a quiet sigh of pleasure as she enjoyed some quiet time to herself as the air started to warm. Summer would be coming before too long. She wondered what they'd be able to do over the break in classes. It would be her first time out on a trip with friends, and she was looking forward to the chance to go out and do things with Yukari and Nigeki, and she had to admit, even Kurumu. Kind of.

Nigeki. Moka had tried to find out what had happened to him when he missed class that day; she supposed she'd gotten a little protective of him after he'd run out on her and then avoided her for days after she found out about his Kamen Rider-like alter ego. Toriel hadn't known anything, neither did Nigeki's friends at the Drama Club, but Felicia had told her off-the-record that he was running an important errand for the school.

What could it be? Nothing too dangerous, she hoped. Moka almost expected to hear the voice of her deeper self in her mind telling her that a weakling like Nigeki couldn't handle it, whatever it was, but none came.

Then again her inner self, her brutal self, had been quiet lately. Ever since the fight with the old Security Committee, actually…what could've made her decide to go silent?

But while Moka was thinking, someone was thinking about her. In the trees at the edge of the girl's dorm, for just a second a shaft of sunlight caught on the long-distance lens of a cameraman crouching in the darkness.

It was Ginei Morioka, her senior at the Newspaper Club and more than occasional peeper, smirking at the gentle smile on Moka's beautiful face. She was easily one of the loveliest girls on campus, and if anyone had an eye for the girls, it was him. But as he snapped a picture of a soft smile of pleasure on her face, he sighed inwardly. He **was** a serial peeper, but even he'd felt a desire to connect more emotionally with a beautiful woman. Like San…oh, San…Was this all there could be between him and an exquisite beauty like Moka Akashiya? Him staring at her through the lens of a camera?

Didn't it always work out in the shows that the guy with the terrible secret that pushed him apart from the world, and the beautiful girl who was his only friend always found love in each other's arms? Had Ginei already lost a chance, however slim, at connecting with this girl?

Then suddenly he saw someone looking straight at him from behind Moka. A figure in black with a bone-white face, glowing eyes of different colors…

Ginei gasped loudly in alarm, and before Moka had even looked all the way up from her book he'd dropped his camera and was bolting through the trees. Not to escape Moka, who he didn't fear even if she did find out someone had been spying on her. But to get away from _him…_

He'd, or _it_ , had only been there for a split-second, but Ginei could still remember the long black coat he wore over a white turtleneck sweater, making him look rather dignified. But it was all undone by his _face_.

Oh god, his face. It had looked more like a mask, a smooth white mask whose most prominent feature was the bizarre grin, haunting and mocking, gaping in his face as if it could've sucked Ginei's soul right out of his body. Eyes that seemed to glow two different colors in the sockets, but it had been so sudden Ginei couldn't even remember what the colors were. In one hand he'd held a thin black cane…

His hands. In spite of everything else about him, Ginei most remembered his hands. The black holes in them, with small flecks of light flying down into them. Like some kind of black hole in deep space sucking in stars that passed too close.

And Ginei could swear he had sworn something else was looking back. Looking back at him, **talking to him** , from inside of that man's hands.

* * *

Another day of school passed, and Moka spent her free time wondering gently where Nigeki had gone and if he was all right. As soon as classes were over, though, she was surprised when everyone was called to a sudden assembly in the campus theater.

As she found a seat in the second row, she spotted a few teachers taking seats as well in the back, including Toriel, who gave her a smile and a friendly wave, and Moka felt her cheeks going pink and had to look away. She glanced over her shoulder and saw the new groundskeeper take a seat next to Toriel with a hopeful smile on his face, but she frowned, got up and took a seat in the row behind him.

"Hey, Moka!" Yukari said with a grin as she took the empty seat at Moka's side. Kurumu took a seat a few chairs away from them and gave Moka a silent glance of acknowledgement.

"What do you think this is about?" the witch asked.

"Let's hope it's not about that fight from before," Moka whispered, and Yukari nodded. The trickle of students in slowed, and after another minute Moka froze as she saw the woman in the eyepatch come in. Toriel knitted her brow as their eyes met for a second, and a look of surprise came over her face as she seemingly recognized the woman. The groundskeeper smiled and waved to the one-eyed woman, who jumped in surprise as she spotted him, but then grinned a saw-toothed grin and waved back, actually blushing a little at the groundskeeper.

The Headmaster, looking eerie as ever in his white robes and with a ghostly smile seeming to float in the darkness of his hood, came onto the stage and tapped the microphone a few times to get everyone's attention. "Thank you all for coming. As I'm sure you all know, the School Security Committee was disbanded recently after proof of misconduct had been brought to light. But we want you all to know our highest priority is keeping all of you safe, and we've appointed a new head of campus security some of our…newer faculty members recommend very highly." He gestured offstage and the woman with the eyepatch walked up to the microphone.

"Hi everybody," she spoke pleasantly. "Like the boss said, I'm the new head of security here at Youkai Academy. My name's Undyne…OR **GOD** AS FAR AS YOU'RE CONCERNED!"

The entire room shook as everyone jumped out of their seats in surprise and landed at the same time.

"I am not here to be your friend!" Undyne went on completely undaunted. "I am not here to tell you things are fine when they aren't! I am here to keep this school safe, and all of you better make sure you remember that, or pay the price!"

The groundskeeper smiled in gentle approval. Toriel nodded and chewed her lip uncertainly. But Alphys was actually bouncing in her seat and shaking with glee.

"I'll be filling out the new Security Committee after I've had a chance to get settled," Undyne went on, more calmly now. "But that _doesn't_ mean troublemakers get the run of the place until then. Don't think I miss anything because I don't have as many eyes as you."

The auditorium went totally silent as Undyne stopped talking for a second. A few students exchanged uneasy glances, most of the rest seemed too scared of the new head of security to risk making anything that seemed like a sudden move. "I'm going to be reforming the Security Committee soon," Undyne went on. "More _selectively_ than the last one, but I've already gotten some very compelling recommendations. Watch for us, because we'll be watching for you. I don't care how tough you think you are, nobody's above the rules with this many kids around trying to learn how to blend in safely. _Nobody_."

After that stiff warning Undyne went on to announce some changes to the rules: curfew was being shortened by half an hour, penalties for skipping class were being heightened, and anyone caught going to the nurse's office for makeout purpose with another student would wish they hadn't. Most of the students left looking nervously over the shoulders, Moka, Kurumu and Yukari among them.

* * *

As the students cleared out Undyne was a little surprised to see a short, chubby woman with glasses and swooped-back blonde hair slink out of the shadows on one side of the stage. She _wasn't_ surprised to see the woman's cheeks covered with a flaming red blush.

"Hi, Undie," Alphys said, not quite able to meet her eye.

"Don't call me that in public," Undyne whispered in irritation. "I'm supposed to be an imposing authority figure, ya know?" Once everyone else was gone, though, she grinned and bent over to kiss Alphys on the mouth and run her long fingers through the squat woman's hair. Alphys squeaked in surprise and her blush got even brighter. "Hi, Alphy! You're looking even cuter than before…" Undyne murmured.

Alphys gently pushed her away. "You could've come when I got hired in the first place."

"Pffft," Undyne replied, dismissively waving her hand. "Alphy, you know how I feel, but we had a whole brand new world to see. Some of us actually want to see it in person, not just on the internet. Teaching isn't my thing, anyway. Busting troublemakers, that I'm _really_ good at."

"I'm kind of surprised Papyrus didn't come with you," Alphys remarked.

Undyne sighed, resting a hand on the back of her head at the remark. "He's really not cut out for this, and you guys already have a gardener, looks like."

Alphys nodded and looked over at the groundskeeper as he lumbered out of the room, his eyes on Toriel, who scowled over her shoulder at him. "Yeah, and I don't think he's planning on leaving by himself, if you know what I mean…"

"Besides, Papyrus and that creepy brother of his are doing something 'REALLY BIG' right now. Although knowing him that means they're making a sidewalk mural or something and calling it a 'puzzle'."

She turned toward Alphys and grinned then playfully mussed her hair. Alphys laughed awkwardly and replied, "Yeah, that sounds _really_ big, doesn't it?" She looked away, not willing to look Undyne in the face for just a second, knowing what she knew now about Papyrus's brother.

Suddenly Undyne seized her under the arms and lifted her up to Undyne's own eye level, grinning that saw-toothed grin. Alphys squawked and struggled in surprise, but Undyne only seemed even more amused. "You're so cute when you're a flop-sweating nerd," she grinned, single eye twinkling.

Then without warning Undyne pursed her lips and pressed them full against Alphys's.

After a second Undyne broke the kiss with an audible *POP* and sighed happily. "I missed you too, Alphy. There were people who had as much as passion as you, but none of them were as cu…oh, you can't hear me anymore. You fainted again."

Indeed, Alphys dangled limply between Undyne's powerful arms, eyes rolled back into her head and glasses hanging off one ear.

"Guess I need to take you back to your nerdhouse until you wake up," Undyne mused. "Hope it's not as hot as your old nerdhouse. God, I _haaaaaaaaaated_ your old nerdhouse."

* * *

"…anyone ever tell you you're the cutest girl in town?" the boy said with a grin.

"I'm a yuki-onna. We use our beauty to lure in prey," Mizore replied conversationally as she picked up his dishes.

He laughed. "You sure lured me…when do you get off?"

Suddenly a dark shape with angry glistening eyes loomed up from behind him, then reached out and grabbed him by the ear. "This is the last time I let you take me **here** ," his girlfriend growled as she dragged him out the door. "Cute waitresses but I'm cuter than any of them!" Everything seemed to shake as she slammed the door behind her.

But as soon as it was closed Takano stepped forward and quietly turned the lock. She smiled at Mizore, who now wore a uniform like her own. "Come on, the dishes can wait for right now. Let's go upstairs and I can show you our room."

"Wait…'our' room?" Mizore asked. She of course had assumed she'd be sharing the spare room they'd advertised with Nigeki. It was why she'd been in a mood to celebrate when he agreed to stay for a while.

Takano grinned. "Of course! It's been so empty here since Koji and the other girls left…he'll be back eventually but it'll be nice to have a friend for a while."

"But…but…!" Mizore sputtered and tried to pull away helplessly as the obliviously smiling Takano hauled her away. "Wait, who's Koji?"

"Oh, he's my fiancé," Takano answered with a smile and a blush. "He's off taking cooking lessons from a friend of my dad's…he could've picked any of the girls who used to work here, but he picked me."

Mizore regarded her silently for a minute as she realized she'd wrongly identified this girl as competition. "What happened to the other girls?"

Takano's smiled faded a little at the memory. "They moved on. I'm very happy with Koji, and they seem to be doing well when we see them now and then. But I do feel a little sad about it sometimes…"

The ice claws Mizore had been planning to form melted away from the back of her wrists. This girl was no threat to her plans for her future, but she painted a very vivid picture. Before Takano could finishing dragging her away she glanced out at the window as Nigeki looked over a list of things the owner wanted him to pick from the restaurant supply store. What if that future didn't happen, could she stand being turned down? But…what if it _did_? Could she deal with seeing the disappointment of everyone else who'd been interested in the guy when they realized they'd lost?

What was being around other people her age doing to her?

* * *

The haze of colors she last remembered after Undyne had picked her up faded and changed into the familiar white of the plaster ceiling of her room on campus. Her vision was a blur, but Alphys rolled onto her side and flailed around at her nightstand for her glasses, felt their familiar shape and put them on.

Then she froze. Who had brought her back to her room?  
"Hey, sunshine!" called a voice, and she whipped in its direction to see Undyne standing there wearing a tiny red apron with the face of a beloved anime character on it.

And only wearing a tiny red apron with the face of a beloved anime character on it.

Alphys stumbled out of bed and over to where the grinning Undyne stood. "Where did you find that?" Alphys demanded. "It's part of my collection!" She stopped as she realized something; she wasn't in the clothes she wore to work, but one of her Mew Mew Kissy Cutie t-shirts and hot pink pajama pants with sock monkeys all over them. "Wait, did you bring me home? And—"

"…and change you into your pajamas?" Undyne finished for her, grin widening. "You're **really** into Mew Mew, huh? She was all over your underwear."

Mortified, Alphys's entire body turned red and she covered her eyes with her wide hands. "Oh em eff gee…"

Then Undyne came over and placed her hands on Alphys's soft shoulders. "Alphy, what's wrong?" she asked, her voice no longer amused but concerned. "I'm just trying to make tonight special since we're back together. Plus you looked so uncomfortable with how you kept tossing and turning in the clothes you had on. Are you really that upset I saw your underpants?"

Still covering her eyes, Alphys nodded silently.

"Really?" Undyne asked.

A second passed and, still covering her eyes, Alphys shook her head.

Undyne smirked. "Just wait til you find out I'm your new roommate!"

That made Alphys look up at her in shock. "What?!"

Undyne shrugged and kept smiling. "The year's already started and every place was full. Well…there was where the old gym teacher was staying, but hell if I'm moving in there after what he was doing!

"So, Alphy," she went on, hooking her hands under the smaller woman's arms again and hauling her off the ground, "Are you really embarrassed at seeing me again?"

Alphys looked Undyne in the eye and shook her head, buck teeth poking out adorably. Undyne leaned in, lips puckered, and Alphys leaned forward as well, meeting Undyne in a lingering kiss as she dangled awkwardly from her lover's arms…

* * *

The orange rays of sunset poured over a field of massive sunflowers swaying in the wind.

The place was known as Witch's Knoll, as according to local legend an old witch secretly lived at the spot and took care of the flowers. Once in a while a kid snuck up to the field to spend the night on a dare. All of them came back intact, and a lot claimed to have seen the witch. Most of their friends and parents laughed it off, the first thinking it just a cheap trick and the second simply glad to see their children safe and sound.

It was just a silly story to the people of the town, something to joke with people passing through.

After all, a witch didn't live there.

 _Two_ witches lived there.

A crow as black as the night glided over the field of sun flowers on the edge of town, stretching out of sight like an endless ocean of yellow. As the bird neared the edge it passed over an ugly black sign with yellow lettering on the front reading 'FUTURE SITE OF NISHIMURA WASTE PROCESSING CENTER.' That one of the last locations of natural beauty in the area was to be cleared for such a thing…it was a crime against the world.

But a plan was set to deal with that. The crow flew on, over the rooftops of the town, looking down at the people as they drove their filthy vehicles to wherever their crass business took them. They thought they were the masters of the world. But they were wrong.

As the crow flew over one small truck, the back loaded up with boxes and bags of vegetables and bottles of cooking ingredients, suddenly a churning sickness flowed into the crow's senses and it struggled to stay in the air. There was something **wrong** with the driver of that truck…something darker and more malevolent than even a human mind.

The crow flew lower and as the truck signaled a turn, swooped around the corner and suddenly morphed into a young, dark-woman in a pink and black dress. She pretended to collapse in the middle of the empty street, clutching her head. The truck stopped a few feet away and the alarmed driver got out and crouched next to her. It was Nigeki Hitoribo.

"Are you okay, lady?" he asked and tried to help her up, but she pulled away.

"No, not yet, I'm still kind of dizzy," she answered. "I'm a little surprised you stopped at all…"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean? Why wouldn't I stop when someone was in the middle of the street?" Nigeki asked.

She smirked faintly. "…but then it really shouldn't surprise me, _vampire_."

He jumped back. "What are you talking about?"

In the blink of an eye she was on her feet, skirts billowing from suddenly jumping up, and a triumphant smile on her lovely face. In one hand she was suddenly brandishing a hook-shaped wooden wand with a small pink orb floating in the curve of the tip. "Wait," he spoke up. "Are you Oyakata?"

"No, I'm not, but you're obviously the one we were waiting for," she answered. "Thought I don't know why the head of that school of yours sent you to us, not with what's lurking inside you."

Nigeki bristled at her accusation. "I'm doing better at keeping it under control than I have in my whole life, **thank you**."

She smiled, but there was a subtle malice to it. "It's not an insult. That kind of force could be exactly what my mistress and I are looking for," she said quietly. "It would be a fine way to pay us back for the knowledge you want from us. Those two young vampires you're looking for, wasn't it?"

He fought down his temper before it could get the best of him. "Where are they?" Nigeki asked slowly.

"I don't know," the witch answered. "But the mistress does. If you'll help us, she'll probably be all too happy to tell you."

"All right, fine. I have to drop this stuff off, but after that we'll go see your mistress," Nigeki replied. "Hop in."

The witch looked at him aghast. "I am **not** getting into that filthy machine, even if we **are** expecting you." She whirled and shrank into a black crow that took to the air and circled the street as Nigeki shrugged and started the truck up. When he started back toward Daphne he saw her flying after him in the rearview mirror.

* * *

A young man and his date walked out of the path leading around Witch's Knoll, both smiling from ear to ear at the walk through the flowers that had marked the ended of their day together. His fumbling hand stretched out and he laced his fingers together with hers. A look of surprise covered the girl's face for a second, but then she smiled up at him.

"Thanks for today, Taro," she giggled.

"Um, you're welcome, Miko," he replied. "Say, um, maybe this is kind of sudden, but do you think you'd be okay with coming to my house tomorrow night to meet my fam—"

She gasped suddenly in surprise, and he'd been so focused on the question he'd been working up the courage to ask all week that he hadn't seen what was right there in front of them.

Coming up the trail was a blonde girl wearing a bright red dress and lacy white apron, the dress matching her hooded cape. In her hands she carried a wicker basket, the contents of which were hidden by a white napkin. Behind her were a group of four hulking men in dark suits and sunglasses, a weird rubbery shine to their skin as they followed behind the girl in perfect synch.

"Oh don't mind us!" the girl grinned, and her canines seemed unnaturally sharp to Taro's eyes. "You guys make such a cute couple, we don't wanna ruin the moment!" She then walked past the young couple, skipping and swinging her basket melodramatically. The men behind her walked past too, not even sparing a glance at the two youths, who wasted no time in hurrying away, the boy's question forgotten.

The girl in the hood led her entourage up the trail through the sun flowers, toward the highest hill on Witch's Knoll. She reached into her basket and pulled out a pair of binoculars with strange heavy lenses and studied the top of the hill for a second, then put the binoculars away, grinning at the confirmation of her objective.

"All right boys, drop the masks!" she sang.

Immediately the men behind her seemed to explode, their suits flying to pieces and their faces flipping down into their torsos to reveal flat metal faces with glowing yellow eyes.

They didn't even seem surprised when the nearest flowers suddenly expanded into green monsters with masses of teeth and angry red eyes before lurching to attack.

* * *

 **A new chapter, finally up. Maybe more content in that I really should've included, but I really wanted to give more of the characters time to shine on their own while getting some new ones among them settled in, like another Darkstalkers character and not a very nice one and we'll see. As I kind of implied in the way some of the characters acted, this is when the real clash between human and monsters starts picking up. Hope you'll look forward to it.**

 **Happy Halloween!**


	13. Chapter 13: Conflicting Interests

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 13 – Conflicting Interests**

Nigeki hauled the bags of rice into Daphne's kitchen six at a time, three on each shoulder. His boss just stared at the sight of a scrawny teenager moving so much without a flinch, but Nigeki set them down heavily as he hurried to unload everything so he could see what these witches had to tell him.

As he hefted two crates of vegetables, he resolved keep his guard up as he went to this meeting. Witches resided neither in the world of humans or the world of monsters, and even if they knew something about what he was after, Nigeki couldn't be sure he was exactly welcome among them. It was an unfortunate reality, but at that moment the only thing on his mind was finding out what happened to his little sisters.

The witch seemed to melt from the shadows as he stepped out the back door again, a coy smile on her face. Nigeki couldn't shrug off the feeling she was amused at having a vampire dependent on her for something. But he did need it, and as civilly as he could, prompted her, "I'm done. I think we can go visit your… _mistress_ now?"

She nodded, but the smirk didn't budge. "Yes, let's go see if she's interested in helping you…" she started to say, turning to face the flower-covered hill in the distance, but stopped as a blue flash lit up the sky for a second, and the witch's mouth opened wide in surprise and horror.

"What's going on?" Nigeki asked, already knowing he wasn't going to like the answer.

"Something's wrong…I have to go!" the witch answered, sprouting wings again and taking to the air, but suddenly something stopped her, and she looked down to see a scowling Nigeki holding onto her ankle.

"Oh no you don't," he said warningly. "I'm going too."

She just nodded and shook her ankle, and this time he let go, then ran after at inhuman speed.

* * *

The girl in the red hood cackled in manic glee as the SMG she held in both hands spewed heavy rounds into the field of plant creatures closing in around her and littering the ground with red-hot shells.

One plant monster fell, sliced in half by the girl's gunfire. Then the one next to it collapsed, and two more, then six, until her weapon clicked empty. She grinned a demonic grin that might've stopped the plant creatures in their tracks if they'd had enough minds of their own to fear for their safety.

"Let me show you the other goodies I brought for Grandma!" she shrieked with glee and pulled another clip from her basket then slapped it into her gun. One of the plant creatures had almost reached her from behind, and as it threw its massive hands high to smash her she casually reached over her shoulder and pulled the trigger. As her bullets impacted on its skin they erupted into flames, consuming it in seconds.

She fired as she ran through the opening she'd just made in the green wall closing in on her. The gun jerked around wildly as she held it in just one hand but it seemed like the entire field of sunflowers had come to life to attack her, and her incendiary rounds hit something everywhere she aimed.

The group of hulking robot soldiers she'd brought with her stood shoulder-to-shoulder as they as waded through the plant creatures hacking away at them, trying to keep the robots from getting closer to the top of the hill. Every few seconds a group of the slavering plants piled up on one of the robots, who would respond by opening a door in its chest, revealing a sizzling hot cannon barrel. A blue beam ripped from the end and tore the cluster of monster plants to shreds. Then the robots kept pushing their advance to the hill.

The girl grinned as another row of the hill's defenders burnt away to ash from another salvo, but instead of reloading her SMG she set down her basket and, impossibly, pulled a full-sized rocket launcher out from it. She aimed the nozzle high then squealed with sadistic pleasure as she squeezed the trigger.

The weapon roared and spewed a missile that arced high into the air and then came down with a horrendous explosion that ripped across seventy feet of ground in every direction, incinerating thirty-two plant creatures in one shot.

She tossed the spent weapon aside and picked up her basket, then skipped through the carnage to catch up with her mechanical accomplices.

* * *

Mentally Nigeki pummeled himself as he ran, careful to keep the witch's flying form in sight as another blue flash ripped across the sky. When she'd come and told him she and her mistress knew where to find his little sisters, he should've dropped everything and gone with her to find out. Instead he'd dropped off the load of food supplies he'd been sent to ferry back to the restaurant. And thanks to that something, something clearly powerful and hostile, was attacking the only person who could tell him what he needed to know.

Things had immediately gone wrong the first day he'd been at school. Somehow it only made sense things would go wrong as soon as he was out doing something actually important…

"What's going on?!" he called up to the witch. "Can you see what's happening up there?"

"Of course not!" she called back derisively. "Do I look like an eagle to you? I can only see what you're seeing at this distance! But we should—"

As she said that another blue flash erupted and slammed into something unseen at the top of the hill. The power rippled around a hazy outline like a large house, and for a second it came into focus. A manor house with a pair of tall cone-shaped spires on either side, lit eerily by the moonlight and looking indeed like the home of some menacing supernatural being. And were those vines creeping **out** of some of the windows?"

A red glow surrounded it and it faded from sight again but only a second later another blue blast slammed into the same spot and it shimmered into sight again.

The witch gasped. "Mistress…! She'll be overwhelmed keeping the house out of sight like that!" She beat her black-feathered wings harder and pulled away from Nigeki, who sighed in frustration. She knew he was coming along to help her, didn't she?

Nigeki crouched and jumped into the air with all his inhuman strength, the strength he'd spent his entire life being told not to use. He went sailing over the roofs of an entire block of house, landed with a crash, then jumped as high and far as he could again.

As he came down he saw another blast cut through the air and blow through the top of the house on the hill, which this time didn't fade from sight.

He had to hurry.

" **Henshin**."

* * *

Mizore sucked hard on the lollipop clenched in her mouth as the house on the hill came fully into view. A battle was taking place up there, and she knew that wherever Nigeki had gone after he'd left in such a hurry, he was on his way there.

Slivers of ice started to form around her hands. She turned away from the window and was about to run out of the room when Takano slipped in and shivered, closing the window. "Looks like it's going to be a nasty storm if all that lightning gets any closer," she said, but turned and gave Mizore a hopeful smile. "We'll be all right in here, though."

"Yeah, a storm," Mizore repeated flatly. Did Takano really expect her to believe those flashes of light over by the hill were supposed to be lightning? Any idiot who looked out there for more than a few seconds could tell otherwise, and that a huge house appeared out of nowhere after a few of them.

Takano took her hand, and before Mizore could pull it away she gasped in surprise. "Oh my! It's gotten so cold there's frost on your hand!...Or is it because of something else?" she asked. Her words were soft, patient and accepting, let Mizore decide if this was something she wanted to reveal to her or not.

Mizore didn't answer, and after a minute Takano asked gently, "Are you worried about your friend?"

She felt like retorting that "friend" was too weak a word for it, but knew Takano was trying to be sympathetic. "Yes," Mizore finally said. "He left in a hurry and I'm worried about why. We think his sisters were kidnapped and we came out here looking for them. I mean…I know he's strong, but it still scares me to know he's going out to deal with the kidnappers all by himself. I wish I could go help him."

"Is that what that ice is about?" Takano asked. Mizore whipped around to face her, unsure of what Takano might be planning to do after guessing Mizore wasn't a human. But for just a second there was an overpowering scent of flowers in the room and Takano's ears seemed to become long and pointed. "It's all right," Takano went on. "I think I can understand the truth, if you want to tell me."

Mizore was not a person who connected with others easily, or spoke freely when she opened her mouth. But now she was sure something dangerous was happening at the edge of this town, involving someone she finally felt something for. And Mizore found herself wanting to open up, just for a moment.

Softly she answered, "Nigeki and I aren't human. His sisters were taken away by someone, and we think it's someone who wants to hurt them because of that. When he left with that girl a while ago…I think it was because she could tell him something about it, and now I think he's in trouble."

Takano took her hand. "He didn't tell you where he was going?" she asked.

"No. I think he knew it'd be dangerous and wanted to keep me safe," Mizore answered, then stood up. "But I know where he is, and I'm going too."

* * *

The hooded girl and her robotic escort continued their push up Witch's Knoll, but as they did the plant-like defenders seemed to be getting desperate. The robots moved like a wall, shoulder-to-shoulder, cutting them down with laser cannons and buzzsaws that popped out of their hands.

But a pack of the plant monsters suddenly piled onto the one on the far left, clawing and yanking at its arms. It fired at them at and blew them into a sheet of green slime, but what was left of one of them still had a hard grip on one of its arms and with a shriek of metal the robot's arm went flying into the darkness with it, the saw still screaming.

A ray of red light flashed out from a window on the top floor of the manor and washed over a pack of plant monsters shambling up to try to stop them. But as it did they seemed to melt and flow together. After a second they stood up again, this time as a single plant monster three times the size of any other. It reached down and grabbed the robot furthest to the right then raised the robot over its malformed head and smashed it against the ground with a crunch.

The other robots turned and opened fire on the monster with their weapons, breaking ranks and climbing up its legs and hacking at its body with their saws too. The plant monster paid no attention and kept smashing the one in its hands against the ground over and over, sending its head and arms flying until the hooded girl reached into her basket and pulled out a grenade as big as her head. She lobbed it at the monster's midsection and ducked as it went off, blowing the monster in half.

The monster's top half crashed a few meters away from her, splattering a few more of its kind running up to join the fight with slime. Another ray of light flashed from the window and those monsters combined into a giant, and a second later another ray flashed into the distance, and another, and another. Giant shadows rose all over the edges of the hill and started closing in.

"Get up and keep moving!" the hooded girl yelled at her metal followers. The three remaining robots squeezed together as they had before and marching up to where the manor house stood, just waiting for them to break their way inside.

One of the giant plant creatures stomped closer and the hooded girl reached into her basket for another grenade. But as she tossed it at the nearest plant giant a dark figure jumped in the way and kicked it back. She gasped in surprise more than horror as it came arcing back her way but yanked a bazooka out of her basket and fired.

Her shot hit the grenade and peppered the plant giant with fiery shrapnel but it just kept stomping closer. The hooded girl's attention was on the one who'd intercepted her grenade. Wearing a strange rippling dark red armor and a mask like a skull, with glowing yellow eye sockets.

"I'll thank you to leave them alone, little girl," he said in a dry, gravelly voice.

She just threw back her head and laughed. "Oh my god, the outfit actually worked on somebody!" The robots turned their attention to the plant giant but the girl dropped her basket and pulled out a pair of sawed-off shotguns, grinning like a maniac.

"You think I'm just a little girl, huh?!" she cackled. "Some people call me Bulleta!" She squeezed the trigger of one of her guns and Bloodstone was peppered by buckshot and he gasped as he realized he could feel it sizzling against his armor.

"Some call me BB Hood!" she yelled and squeezed the other trigger. This time Bloodstone vaulted over her head before it could hit him. As he hit the ground the hooded girl had already turned and was grinning at him like all she could see was a target.

"But you can call me the Reaper!" she shrieked, grinning like a demon, and grabbed for a fresh weapon.

* * *

Inside the manor house a robed figure sat down heavily in an old armchair by the window, a crimson crystal at the end of the wand in her hand glowing hotly for a second. Outside dozens of the hulking plant monsters walked past, products of her most powerful magic.

But now those human trespassers were still coming. Even if her defenders could stop them, her plans were exposed. How had those miserable humans found out, and maybe more pressingly, where had they found that crazy girl in the hood to send after her?

She turned to the figure at her side, but **shape** seemed more appropriate. All she could make out over the blackness surrounding him was his grinning skeletal mask with a blue eye socket and a yellow one atop a turtleneck sweater, and the bone-white hands at his sides, one leaning on a spindly black cane.

"You've come a long way for nothing, you know," she wheezed, and swore the smile on his mask seemed to get wider in response. A garbled buzzing sound came from, more from the openings in his hands than his face, but it was one she'd learned to understand. To an extent, at least.

"She's not here, only the boy," she clarified, but his mask stayed immobile and no reply came as another explosion lit up the night sky outside for a second. "Ruby will be joining us any moment."

The masked figure nodded, the buzzing he gave in response sounding calm.

"Then I suppose you'd better get back to whatever it is you're doing that outshines me protecting my home," she said, but when she turned to see if he reacted at all, he was already gone.

Of course he was, he'd never had any interest in her or her desire to strike back at humanity. Only that he knew a fight was coming and it might draw the attention of someone else…

A winged form landed on the balcony outside the window and slipped inside. She sighed in relief as she recognized the dark-haired girl in the pink and black dress, carrying a glowing wand of her own. "Ruby, my child, you're back safe..."

"I came as soon as—" the younger witch started to say, but her mistress silenced her with a wave of her hand.

"Never mind that. Did you bring them along with you? **He** came looking for the girl."

Ruby shook her head. "She wasn't there, just the boy and a different girl, one with a cold aura. He's outside now, delaying the human. Come with me, mistress! Together we can—" she said and took her mistress's hand to try to get her to feet, but the older witch pulled away.

"No, child. Bring him to me. I promised the Doctor I'd tell him our story, and as infuriating as that man is, I can fulfill one promise tonight."

* * *

Bloodstone's blade whistle through the air and sliced through BB Hood's cape but she managed to flip into the air and it missed her body. She unrolled in midair, reached into her basket and pulled out a wine bottle. In front of Bloodstone's disbelieving eyes it sprayed a thick white foam all over the area, and all over Bloodstone.

He yelled in surprise and horror as he saw steam rising from his body and realized it was some kind of acid, one that could even get through his armor. With all his speed he jumped into the and his armor expanded outward suddenly into a mass of red spikes and bloats that scattered the clouds of acid in all directions. As Bloodstone landed his armor reformed around him, still sizzling, and he immediately took off in a crouched-over run into the darkness over the field.

BB Hood stared into the field of plants still standing, probably just normal ones to make the ones hiding those plant creatures harder to suspect. But by then the first of a whole swarm of the giant ones slammed its foot down fifty feet away and almost knocked BB Hood down with the aftershock. Her remaining robots had almost gotten to the manor house but another giant plant had taken a swipe and knocked them down.

"You think this is something I can't handle?!" BB Hood called angrily. She held her basket over her head and a missile screamed out of her linen napkins and up into the nearer plant giant's chest where it exploded. The thing howled with rage but beat out the flames with its hands and reached out for Hood.

She threw and shot everything she could reach inside her basket, bullets, bazookas and bombs ripping the air. Chunks of the plant went flying off but this one seemed tougher than the one before, filled with some stronger magic, and kept staggering after her and swiping the air with its giant paws as she danced and jumped away from them while flames spread across more and more of its body.

She tried to keep her eyes open for other dangers as she tried to keep fending off the now limping plant giant, but suddenly yellow eyes lit up behind her and Bloodstone charged out of the darkness. Before she could stop him he landed a punch and a red geyser erupted from his fist, blasting her into the air and toward the plant giant. It reached out to smash her between its giant hands.

But just before she slammed into its chest she snatched a jar of red jelly out of her basket and smashed it against the monster's chest. A second later the red smear exploded and ripped the plant giant apart.

As it fell Hood landed feet-first against its waist and jumped off, cape on fire, back toward Bloodstone. At least, where Bloodstone had been. As he saw her reaching for another weapon he darted into the shadows. She landed, brandishing a nasty-looking shotgun, and immediately put on nightvision goggles and swept the area looking for his shape in the dark. Suddenly she spotted the warm outline of a human figure and took aim.

In the next instant the ground exploded under BB Hood and flung her into the air. Her weapon went spinning out of her hand and in the space of a heartbeat Bloodstone came flying at her in a fierce flying kick tackle. She landed hard and rolled several times. As soon as her vision cleared she could see Bloodstone had her wrists pinned in fingers of cold iron.

"Call this off now," he growled warningly, "and you might still walk away from here alive." At that she laid back and laughed, a half-crazed look forming in her eyes, then she looked him in the face gave him a frightening grin.

"You think I'd come here if I was **afraid** of monsters like you?!" BB Hood laughed. "I came here to **kill** everything like you up here! You want me to leave, you're gonna have to kill **me** to do it!"

Bloodstone gave a low, dry laugh in reply. "And because I'm a 'monster,' that means that I have to enjoy killing humans, I suppose?"

She just laughed in his face again. "Oh you're one of THOSE ones, huh, a 'monster with a heart of gold'? If only those big nasty humans who just **don't understand** only got to know you they'd see how nice you really are!" She kicked at his chest with amazing strength, squeezing the air from his lungs and sent out a crunch that he hoped had been his armor. But Bloodstone tightened his grip, the lights in his mask flaring threateningly, and she didn't try it again.

"And you, the one who came here loaded up with guns and killer robots and cackling like a maniac are a defender of the powerless, I guess," Bloodstone said through clenched teeth.

"And **you** think all these killer plants were up here to do something nice, I guess!" BB Hood retorted then grinned right before a searing beam ripped across Bloodstone's back and threw him into the air.

He landed on his back, armor flaking from the heat of the laser. The robot soldier that fired it was facing him down silently as the weapon started to glow for another shot when one of the plant monsters grabbed it off the ground and crushed it in one palm. As creaking metal filled the air the robot fired its laser one last time and blew the plant's arm off.

Bloodstone got up and the blades on his arms flashed to their full length. BB Hood and her flunkies had stormed up to the house and only a pair of the plant giants were keeping them at bay. More were stomping closer in the distance but he doubted they'd last long…

But he'd only taken one step before suddenly a whirling black cloud of feathers whipped up around him and suddenly he was flying through the air toward the house, the witch he'd met before flying next to him.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Bloodstone yelled at her.

"You heard what she said!" the witch called back, a look of disdain on her lovely face. "If you want to stop her, you'll have to kill her, and you're obviously not cut out for a job like that!...Go talk to the mistress, I'll deal with this! She says she has something important to tell you, but I can't imagine what she'd have to say to a pitiful excuse for a vampire like you!"

With that she flew away and the force pulling Bloodstone along dragged him through an upstairs window and abruptly stopped and the feathers fell all around him.

* * *

He brushed the dark feathers off his head and shoulders, sighing in irritation. He looked around, finding himself in a room like the upstairs parlor in his family's house, but all the furniture was covered with white sheets and the vases by the windows were empty except for dust. The only thing uncovered was an armchair by a fireplace in the far wall that glowed a soft orange. On the armrest Bloodstone could make out a gnarled hand.

He was peering at what looked like vine growth in the stairwell when "Hello, boy," said a dry, tired voice. "You've come a long way to see me, haven't you?"

"I came to find a witch named Oyakata," Bloodstone answered as he walked around to face her. She looked at up him, showing a wrinkled face with dark lines below her eyes and long silver hair that spilled over the back of the chair. "Are you Oyakata?" he asked, a little cautiously.

She chuckled tiredly and leaned forward to look him in the eye. "Do you even know why you were sent to find me, boy?" she asked him.

"I was told you could help me find a pair of vampires who'd gone missing," he answered simply. "That's all I'm interested in right now."

The witch laughed lightly and sank back into her chair. "I'm sure that friend of yours who sent you here wants you to think of bigger things than two vampires. Him, the one who runs your school? He thinks some great danger's coming, and he sent you to bring me back to him so I can help him stop it from…I don't know, destroying the world, probably. I had plans of my own, but it seems like that crazy girl out there already knows about them."

Bloodstone looked away from here as an explosion glowed against the dark sky for a second. "Which one?" he muttered.

Oyakata laughed again, sounding tired and resigned. "Ruby's a good girl," she said and smiled as a distant look came over her eyes. "When I met her she was so young and lost…she'd just lost her family in an accident and all she could think about was how unfair the world was to take such wonderful people away from her. I suppose we all think of our families that way."

"Not all of us," Bloodstone replied without missing a beat.

"At least you know your family, boy. At least the hope is there," Oyakata replied evenly. "But Ruby and I were all we had in the world. We made our home here because of the flowers, and how everyone seemed to love them, and we thought we'd just be left alone here in peace. But not long ago we found out the area was going to be bulldozed and turned into a dump site. For a while I lost my wits. Ruby and I created a force to invade the city down there and destroy everything as a warning. But then…"

"Then you learned about Hood coming for you?" Bloodstone supplied as another explosion flashed outside the window and the dark shape of a slain plant giant fell past.

Oyakata shook her head and rose from the chair and walked past him. "No," she replied quietly. " _ **Someone else**_..." she said, then shuddered at the memory. "The Doctor, we call him, he came and warned me that the girl out there, yes, had found out about us somehow and was coming to attack us. He said he'd protect me if I helped him with his goals." Before Bloodstone could ask who this Doctor was, the witch continued.

"But I saw how dangerous I'd made things by creating that army out there. I'd drawn a killer here putting Ruby in danger…I'm old and I've made some foolish choices. But she's so young, and deserves better than to die with me up here tonight. I'll make sure you get the information you're after, boy, in exchange for a favor from you."

"In exchange for what?" he asked. "Saving you from Hood? Or this 'Doctor' of yours?"

She waved her hand dismissively. "It's too late for that. In exchange for taking Ruby with you when you return. Let her have a place to belong, just like Mikogami gave you."

He nodded. "All right. But now I should go stop the fight out there."

Oyakata picked up a tattered book and turned to face him.

" **Run, boy** ," she whispered.

* * *

Ruby watched as another plant giant fell to the laser barrage of BB Hood's remaining robot guards, while the maniacal girl herself held another at bay with a barrage of gunfire. The witch fumed with rage. Was this what all their planning was going to come down to? Complete destruction at the hands of a crazed girl and her toys?

She held up her wand and the stone flashed with power. The ground around Hood's feet suddenly cracked and a mass of barbed vines came shooting out in all directions forming a cage around her. Glaring threateningly down at the girl Ruby yelled and waved her wand, making the cage close in around Hood.

As she looked up at Ruby, though, if anything her grin had gotten even wider. In her hand was a red lollipop but as she yanked the wrapper off it burst into flame. Hood waved it at the vines closing in and seared through them with ease. She came jumping through the vines and threw her flaming confection at Ruby who dove out of the way and brandished her wand again.

A circle of glistening eyes lit up in the darkness around Hood and a flock of crows before a flock of angry crows erupted like a hurricane. They pecked and tore at Hood's shoulders and clothes and she ran back and forth trying to get a second of clear to get another weapon out of her basket: a jar full of what looked like candy balls. She tore the lid off and chucked the contents into the air where they exploded into colorful, noisy bursts like fireworks. The crows cawed angrily but scattered for the few seconds Hood need to break away from inside them.

Suddenly Ruby saw Bloodstone come jumping out of the top floor of the house. He arced through the air just before the walls of the house splintered. Ruby let out a gasp of surprise as the remains of the dead plant monsters that now littered the hill melted into streams of green slime and flowed up to the house. Even the plant giant at her side turned and stomped up the hill along with the other still standing. They paid no attention to BB Hood and her accomplices; any pieces sliced off by their blasts melted into slime and flowed away with the rest.

Ruby flew down to where Bloodstone crouched behind a big rock, pinned down by BB Hood's gunfire. As she folded her wings into her back she screeched at Bloodstone, "What's going on here?! What did you do to the mistress?"

"I listened to her story like you told me to, then she picked up a book and told me to run away!" he yelled back over the roar of a barrage pelting the rock. "So I did!"

"What book?!" Ruby yelled, but her words were drowned by the remaining robots firing their weapons suddenly, almost frantically. The clots of green slime slithering up to the house had crawled up around their metal legs and were dragging the mechanical killers along with them as the robots fired their weapons and tried uselessly to pull free. The slime even picked up the broken remains of the robots they'd managed to destroy.

The house creaked again and wall slats popped open, revealing a huge pulsating shape inside. BB Hood aimed a bazooka at the side of the house just as the rest of the slime slipped in and the plant giants melted and slid inside too.

She never got to fire it. The house suddenly exploded, sending sharpened hunks of wood and glass went flying in all directions. Bloodstone yelled and shoved the boulder he and Ruby crouched behind higher to shield them from the rain of debris. A few feet away he could see BB Hood rolling down the hill sporting a few new tears in her dress and cape.

Then the dark form of the thing that'd smashed its way out of the house unfolded into a massive, grotesque bulging shape. It spread further and further, seeming to cover the sky. It was a bulbous cluster of plants with the giant saw-toothed mouths of the smaller plant monsters sticking out in every direction, snapping open and shut like they were eager to feed. Even the metal bodies of BB Hood's robot troops sticking out through holes in its leathery skin, struggling feebly and shaking their heads back and forth.

And at the top of a towering central stalk, surrounded by the gaping mouths of the plant creatures she created, was the limp face of Oyakata, a pale white light flowing out of her eyes and mouth, matching the light floating from the pages of the book lodged into the green skin at her feet.

"MISTRESS!" Ruby screamed. But the massive plant golem shiftedforward and started moving to the lights of the town in the distance on giant misshapen feet, ignoring her completely. The sound of a rifle being cocked managed to cut the air just before BB Hood fired a shell into the plant golem's side but it went totally ignored as the thing took another ground-crushing step closer to the town.

"Ooooooohh," BB Hood gasped, quivering in anticipation. "That thing's gonna make me RICH when I sell the parts!"

Ruby cried out in terror and her wings spread from her back before she flew to the top of the thing that had once been her teacher and only friend. Bloodstone growled in frustration as she did, leaving him behind. Now she was the only one who could tell him what he needed to know, and he'd have to deal with the planet golem to get her to talk. But BB Hood would be taking potshots at him while trying bring it down…he had to deal with her first, and fast.

The yellow light in the sockets of his mask flashed brightly and he dropped into a low run in an arc through the darkness. Not seeming to notice him with the huge target she had to focus on instead, BB Hood readied another weapon. As she was about to lob a grenade Bloodstone sprang at her, arcing through the air…and just before he could tackle her she suddenly turned and pointed what looked like a flare gun at his chest with a twisted smile.

She'd been ready for him the whole time.

But as she squeezed the trigger a shell of ice suddenly spread across the weapon and covered Hood's hand. She gasped in surprised but Bloodstone just growled as he plowed into her.

"I'm giving you a last chance to leave here in one piece!" Bloodstone snarled, a guttural tone in his voice as his hunter instincts started taking over.

BB Hood growled and grabbed at her basket for another weapon, not even bantering with him this time. As she reached for it a huge ice ball of ice fell out of the sky and crushed it, making Hood gasp in surprise. Bloodstone got off her and heaved her down the hill.

"This is the only chance you're getting human! Don't waste it!" he growled.

She opened her mouth to reply before a flurry of gleaming ice javelins shot out of the sky and she had to scramble out of the way before she was impaled. Hood scowled up at him, but clutching her ice-covered hand she turned and ran off into the darkness. Bloodstone watched her go, sure that he'd meet again soon and she'd be looking forward to it.

But for the moment he turned and glanced over one shoulder. "You can come out, Mizore." A second later the girl peeked out from behind a row of sunflowers.

"Hi."

"Why'd you come here? I left you at the restaurant so you'd be safe."

"I came 'cause you were in trouble," she replied bluntly as always.

He sighed. "Since you're here, and I'm going to need all the help I can get, follow me. But don't run up to the monster, whatever happens. Am I perfectly clear?"

"Okay," was her short reply. But she was smiling around her lollipop as she followed.

* * *

Sizzling blue beams ripped through the air and singed the end off one of Ruby's wings. She cried out in pain and surprise but dove and flipped through them until she managed to get close enough to land on top of the plant golem. She ran over the shifting green skin beneath her feet to where she could still see the face of her mentor.

Even as she watched, though, Oyakata's body seemed to sink slowly into the plant matter around her. "MISTRESS!" Ruby screamed and grabbed her friend's hand, pulling with all her might to free her from the monstrosity around them. Her hand slipped and the witch went tumbling backward. She clawed her way to her knees with tears welling in her eyes.

" **Why** , mistress? Why would you do this?!" Ruby wailed. "Why would you give your life like this when we were just about to launch our attack?!"

But still Oyakata didn't reply, staring into the distance as the light glaring from her eyes seemed to grow even brighter. "What did The Doctor have over you you?!" Ruby screamed, but then bit down angrily on her lip and flew into the air again. Brandishing her wand she sent a crescent of light spinning through the air toward where Oyakata was buried to cut her free. One of the entombed robots launched a beam, obliterating it.

She gasped in dismay but flew in again, wand glowing with power to cut Oyakata free from right in front of her. Ruby stopped right in front of her teacher's hollow eyes but as she raised her wand suddenly a pair of tendrils shot up and attached themselves to her neck, and started to suck the life out of her. As Ruby tried to concentrate and resist another vine wrapped around her wand and crushed it to splinters…

On the ground Bloodstone dashed after the plant golem. Any minute it would be spotted from the town, and that would be it. Monsters wouldn't be able to hide the truth of their existence anymore, and after the destruction of the town, the humans would be out for blood.

He considered his Magnum Vermillion attack, but his arm twitched back as if his body was protesting against it…and then he spotted a faint white glow near the top. His inhuman vision zeroed in on it and he recognized the book Oyakata had been holding just before she changed into that thing.

She'd been showing him where to attack.

"Mizore, can you freeze that thing's feet to the ground? It only needs to hold for a minute," Bloodstone asked.

"Yeah," Mizore replied, beaming at being asked to help. She raised her arms high and immediately the temperature around them plummeted. Bloodstone growled in irritation but held still and let her work. After a few seconds Mizore's hair started to form into icicles, and as they'd been hoping a cocoon of ice formed around one of the giant plant's feet. It grunted in surprise and tried to pull free but as another foot hit the ground more ice formed and pinned it to the ground too.

"Now, Mizore…I need **height** ," Bloodstone said. "Can you make me some steps? I need to get to the top of that thing."

She nodded and a block of ice as tall as either of them formed near the monster. She concentrated again and another one twice as tall formed attached to that one. As Mizore formed yet another even bigger ice block Bloodstone's eyes went burning yellow yellow as he let his predatory instincts take over completely.

He made a heavy jumped onto the first ice block, driving his boots half an inch into the surface so he wouldn't skit then jumped to the next step up. Mizore watched as he climbed her makeshift stairs and wondered what his plan was…or with the savage growl he let out as he jumped from the last step to the top of the plant monster, if he could even think of one now.

Bloodstone charged over the pulsing mass of the plant's skin, his hunting instincts assessing every inch looking for any threat. One giant mouth extended itself outward to reach him, jaws snapping, but Bloodstone turned and with merciless ease hacked it off from the body with one effortless slice from his elbow-blade.

Without warning a swarm of arm-sized missiles came screaming up over the side of the giant and twisted through the air in Bloodstone's direction. So she could use the weapons on those robots she'd absorbed too?

Not making a sound he went into a bent-over run across the monster. A few of them crashed into the ground behind him and went off without coming anywhere near. Another one came closer but as it went off Bloodstone jumped just before it made impact and watched in amusement as it ripped a hole in the plant's flesh instead. The final missile came straight at him in midair and Bloodstone contemptuously slashed it in two.

A laser beam sizzled up through the monster's skin and blasted him hard in the chest. Bloodstone flew backward through the air and landed stunned in a small crater on the monster's back, armor smoking and chipped where he'd been hit. Immediately jagged yellow teeth sprouted from the edges and it closed around Bloodstone before he could get to his feet. Within seconds bulges formed on the outside as Bloodstone tried to punch his way out, then seemed to go silent.

But a second later the plant-mouth exploded as Bloodstone erupted from it like a bladed hurricane and spraying plant matter everywhere. Grunting in annoyance, ignoring the smoking divot in the front of his armor, the vampire took one last powerful leap and landed in front of the stalk where Oyakata was entombed.

A few steps away he saw Ruby trapped in the grip of a mass of barbed vines. The tips were pressed against her skin and slowly gulping her blood. She managed to raise her head and feebly gasped, "Vampire…help me!"

Bloodstone heard her but only examined her for a second and turned away. He was completely possessed by his hunter's instincts, and they told him to destroy this lowly plant creature, whose size had given it the gall to think it could conquer him with its gaping mouths and the commandeered weapons of those robot soldiers.

And he knew exactly how to do that.

" **Heartbreaker Punch!** " the Bloodstone itself screamed. He charged his fist with crimson power and smashed it with all of his awesome might into the book at Oyakata's feet and making the air seem to scream with pain, a reverberating shockwave ripping through the plant golem's body. Pages flew through the air and the glow they gave off went out as their power faded from Bloodstone's destructive attack.

Huge tears started forming around Bloodstone's feet and the plant golem's countless mouths all flew open in a silent scream. Bloodstone's skull mask disintegrated into dusty particles that blew away. As Nigeki's face was exposed the expression of abject rage on it softened into a daze and he shook his head as Bloodstone's hunter instincts released him.

"Vampire…please, help me," he heard Ruby gasp from nearby. He limped over but even as his armor melted away he managed to slash through the vines holding her and pulled them off her slender arms. She gasped in relief but before she could say anything he set her down and jumped over to where Oyakata laid, and clawed at the vines around her for what seemed like forever before managing to haul her out and lay her over one shoulder.

The plant golem's body heaved under their feet and Nigeki took a massive jump into the air away while Ruby managed to spread her black wings and fly to safety as the plant golem fell to bits.

* * *

Nigeki's feet dug into the ground as he landed, skidded and fell hard onto his back. He desperately shifted Oyakata into his arms so he wouldn't crush her as he fell, and cried out as he slid against the ground. He managed to scramble to his feet and staggered away from the collapsing plant golem until his legs finally gave out, his armor completely gone.

Once the noise had all ended he gently set Oyakata down on the ground and asked, "Are you all right?"

She gave a smile that made her look even more wrinkled, but as if a huge weight was off her shoulders. "No, boy. I'm not," the witch answered with a dry laugh. "You don't really expect me to get back up from a punch like the one you gave me, do you?"

Before Nigeki had the chance to answer something suddenly flew down from the sky and slammed into Nigeki's side knocking him away from Oyakata. He jumped back up ready to fight with what little energy he still had, but stopped when he saw Ruby kneeling over her teacher, eyes glistening with tears. "Mistress! Tell me you'll be all right!"

"I just told him I won't be, child," Oyakata replied. "I'm not about to lie to you…you deserve the truth here at the end.

"But why?! Why did you place that spell on yourelf? You knew you wouldn't be able to return to normal!"

Oyakata touched her cheek. "So I could destroy those mechanical fiends and leave this world with a clear conscience, my little one. I've lived a long life and most of it away from the world. But my meeting with the Doctor and his request for our help…it helped me realize how big the world is, and how you need to see how big it is beyond Witch's Knoll."

"Mistress…" Ruby sobbed.

Again Oyakata cupped her cheek. "Go with the vampire, my little one. He helped us and now we need to help him. Give him the information he was promised. He will take you to a safe place where you can begin to sample the supernatural world," she said, then beckoned for Nigeki to come over to her. He nodded and kneeled down by her side.

"I know you came here looking for something close and personal to you, boy," she said, her voice growing faint with every word. "But I have an awful feeling you've just landed yourself in something bigger than you ever imagined.

"He's watching for you…Beware of the Doctor, boy... _beware of the man who speaks in hands_!" Oyakata croaked, then seized Nigeki suddenly by the front of his shirt before falling back and shutting her eyes. Ruby burst into tears and Nigeki reached out to touch her supportively on the shoulder, but she pulled away from the vampire. He got up and walked away to let her be alone with her grief.

God, he should've expected it, he thought. But even as drained as he felt after all that he heard the crunch of something being crushed under someone's foot. He groaned and got ready to fight again…

…but sighed in relief as he recognized the long lavender hair and striped knee socks of Mizore Shirayuki coming out from behind a stand of sunflowers.

"There you are," she said simply.

"Yeah," he said, smiling a little sheepishly. "Are you—"

But she asked first. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I've got a couple scrapes and I think I used up all my blood reserve, but I'm fine—"

All of a sudden Mizore had closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around him. "Good," she murmured. "I'm glad."

Not sure what to say, Nigeki just smiled a tired smile and patted her on the back with one hand. She cooed softly in approval.

* * *

Half an hour later Nigeki unlocked the back door at Daphne and Mizore practically danced inside. "I'll go run us a bath," she purred to Nigeki with an understated smile.

"I could sure use one," he replied, the way his body and torn clothes were covered in dirt after what they'd just been through. "You go ahead, though. I'm going to make sure nobody followed us first." Mizore winked and danced up the stairs.

Ruby, on the other hand, hesitated to go inside. "Is it really all right if I stay here with you?"

"It will be after you tell me where my sisters are," Nigeki answered her.

She nodded. "I will, but after what just happened we're all weak. It would—"

" **No!** " Nigeki grabbed her by the shoulders, flashing his fangs. "I was promised help finding my family, **and I'm getting it**. **No** tricks, **no** games. You show me where **RIGHT NOW**."

The witch started at him in wide-eyed fear, but after a second he recovered and let her go. "I'm sorry, but we absolutely can't wait," he said. "Hood works for the people who have my sisters, right?"

Ruby nodded slowly. "Yes. Those machines of hers had the same symbol as the ones who captured the young vampires."

"Then it probably won't be long before they find out she lost, and that the person who beat her's probably looking for their hideout. If we wait it might be too late for my sisters. I have to act right now."

"And you're going to just leave your girlfriend here?" Ruby asked.

"She **isn't** my girlfriend," Nigeki glowered. "And yes I am, because I can't ask my friends to risk their lives. Let's go."

Ruby studied him for a second and frowned, but then nodded. "All right, I'll show you."

* * *

Soon Nigeki was peering out of an alley between two buildings at the door to a cellar behind an old house that looked like it hadn't been lived in for a year. But that could also mean these people were just good at covering their tracks…

"You're sure this is it?" the vampire asked. "How do you know?"

"All the birds and plants in this town were our spies," Ruby explained. "We were going to attack these AGES people but they made the first move."

"AGES? What does that mean?" Nigeki asked, but the witch only shrugged in reply.

He sighed, then pulled back into the darkness, taking Ruby by the hand with him. "Look," he said slowly. "I'm sorry for how I treated you before we left. You were really upset about your teacher."

"And you're worried about your sisters. It must be a blessing to know who they are," Ruby replied. "…will you really take me with you after this? Back to that place of yours with people like you? Like **us**?"

Nigeki nodded slowly. "Yes, but only if you don't tell Mizore where I'm going after you get back."

"What…?" Ruby asked, puzzled, then his meaning dawned on her. "You're going in there by yourself? But you used so much power, how can you possibly—"

"I'm going off to feed," Nigeki replied and walked past her. "No-one's going to die and no-one's going to get hurt who doesn't have it coming. But I need blood and I need it **fast**. Don't let Mizore come after me, don't tell her where I am. And please, tell her that no matter how she feels, I can't put anyone else at risk anymore."

Then he disappeared into the shadows like the creature of the night he truly was.


	14. Chapter 14: Prejudices

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 14 – Prejudices**

Her name was Azusa Matsudaira.

She had custody of her son Jun for the weekend, and as they sometimes did when she could get the time away, they'd planned a hiking trip. This time to a place called Witch's Knoll that was supposed to be covered with beautiful sunflowers.

But now she sat cowering behind the wheel of her rental car as the horrific screech of a thug's knife tip dragging across the hood filled the air.

"Come on, lady!" he sneered. "Come on out of the car! We just need a little money to make it to the end of the month! If you help us out I promise this'll go a lot easier for you…"

She stomped on the gas but the car could only limp away with two slashed tires. "Kaaaaaaa-saaaan!" Jun screamed from the back seat. Already Azusa could see the three lowlifes jogging to easily catch up with her and surround the car again.

"What's it going to be lady?" the leader of the gang asked again, the blade of his knife flashing in the moonlight. Azusa thought of just opening the window and throwing her purse, hoping they really would just let her and Jun go. Instead she gasped as suddenly a person seemed to fade into existence next to the gang leader.

He was a dark-haired boy in his teens, but from his ragged clothes and being smeared head-to-toe with dirt she figured him for homeless. The gang leader turned toward him in surprise, scared for a second, Then when he saw the intruder was just a teen his sneer returned.

"Get out of here, kid…isn't it past your bedtime?" he laughed. But the boy's hand suddenly flashed out and grabbed his knife, then squeezed down on the blade and crushed it into a storm of glittering shards.

Before the gang leader could even react the boy suddenly lunged and **sank his teeth into the man's neck.**

The gang member struggled limply in silence for a minute before the boy stepped back and let him drop to the ground. He rolled onto his stomach and tried to crawl away, twitching in terror, drained but alive. But immediately the boy turned and ran off, a slender black blur, after the other two gang members who'd already run away.

Azusa froze and sucked in a long, low breath as she tried to steady herself.

Who was that boy?

Who had been her vampire savior?

* * *

Takano Aoyama hadn't been especially surprised when her two new friends came back with a new friend of their own after whatever happened out on Witch's Knoll.

But after Mizore's display of devotion, she was surprised not to see Nigeki himself returning with her.

The temperature in the rooms above Daphne was plummeting. Ruby had wrapped herself in the futon Takano had offered, Takano herself just sat there seemingly unaffected. Through the wall her father's snoring had slowed and she could hear a loud shiver every few seconds through the thin wall instead.

Mizore sat in the middle of the room, staring intently at her knees as her hair reformed into thick icicles and her eyes turned a pale blue. Frost was forming on the corners of the walls. A needle-like icicle had already formed on the tip of her lollipop.

"I went and helped him, and he just ran away again."

"He didn't just run away," Takano replied. "He didn't want to risk your safety."

"What's the difference?!" Mizore hissed, literally glowing with blue energy as she did. Huge clusters of white frost solidified on everything and the window cracked from the sudden drop in temperature.

But Takano stood up and a light breeze blew through the room, a green light surrounding her. Her ears suddenly flashed out to twice their length and ending in an elven point. "That's enough," she said gently. The ice started to melt and the aura around Mizore started to go out.

"What are you doing?" Mizore growled, but Takano waved her hand in front of the yuki onna's face, scattering glowing dust in the air. Mizore gave her a literal icy stare, but Takano didn't move, and the smell of flowers started to fill the room.

"Calm down, Shirayuki-san," Takano whispered. "Everything will be all right." Most dust flowed from her hand and Mizore's eyelids started to droop and then she fell backward onto her loaned futon. Takano sighed lightly and pulled a blanket up over Mizore to let her sleep comfortably.

Ruby leaned back against the wall and sighed in relief. Her wand had been destroyed in her mistress's rampage, and without it she was feeling almost naked. "Thank you," she breathed. "I'm ashamed to admit it, but I don't know if I could've done much about it if she'd gotten any angrier…you're obviously more than you appear, though."

Takano gave her a level look. "Does it matter?"

"I don't know, does it?" Ruby replied with the same question. "It wasn't that long ago my mistress and I were planning to destroy this entire town. If we'd known there were youkai here, we might've tried to evacuate you first."

But Takano smiled lightly and shook her head. "This is my home. My family's here. Or it will be after Koji finishes cooking school and comes back.

"Yes, your fiancé," Ruby murmured. "Is he also…?"

"No, he's human. So is tou-san. It's a long story," Takano replied and laid down before pulling a blanket over herself. "And we should probably all get some rest, don't you think? I don't think Nigeki would want us to worry about him."

Ruby lay down too and flattened out the blanket, but her eyes stayed open for a few more minutes. "He wouldn't?" she finally asked.

"Why wouldn't he?"

The witch sighed and laid back. "He has everything he wanted from me. He promised to take me back to their school, but would you help someone you only just met, who got you dragged into a fight? Someone who…"

"Someone who what?" Takano gently prompted her.

"…someone who wanted to destroy a town for planning to destroy your home. I…I don't know," Ruby sighed. "Maybe the mistress is right. Maybe there is a lot for me to see."

* * *

Robert Blacher scowled as he spotted a speck of dust on the sleeve of his immaculate blue suit, the only thing the least bit unsanitary anywhere to be seen on the sleek white halls of the base. He brushed it off with a grimace, straightened his dark beard with his other hand then made his way to one of the sealed electronic doors, flashed his pass and fingerprints at the scanner and it opened with a hiss of air.

Inside the walls were lined with monitors and other electronic readouts. On most of them were a pair of young girls—or so they looked, but Blacher knew better—in white hospital gowns. In the center of the room, wearing a dull silver helmet connected to a computer by heavy cables was a young woman with short auburn hair, garbed in an indigo jacket and jeans. Standing by her was an old man, brown-haired and sharp-eyed but marring the area around his right eye were a series of claw-like scars.

"Ah, I hope I'm not interrupting, Dr. Crawler," Blacher said.

"Crawley," the man corrected him, but held out his hand in greeting. Blacher shook it. "And please, call me Reed. This is my assistant, Shelley Frank."

"Ah, yes, the ESPer," Blacher replied with no trace of interest.

Reed nodded and forced a smile for the inspector. "Shelley's been scanning and finding her way through their minds with her powers. We've made a lot of progress in mapping the vampire neural system to affect a reversal process."

"Are you achieving control over the subjects?"

Reed shook his head. "We're not doing this to try to control them, sir. We're trying to establish enough information to effect a cure to their condition. The mental differences are some of the most difficult to plot."

"Of course, of course. But the backers want a failsafe plan in case things turn violent. You knew that going in, doctor, and they're getting tired of the lack of signs of life on this project."

"We were brought on board to neutralize supernatural dangers, Mr. Blacher."

" _Eliminate_ supernatural dangers, Dr. Crawley," Blacher retorted.

As they argued Shelley felt a strange coldness at the edges of her telepathic sense. Strange but familiar, like the girls she whose brains she had been gently trying to probe. There was another sensation there, a kind of anger, like a restless beast who knew danger was near but had no choice to approach regardless.

She focused her attention more on this new presence, probing for the cause of its unease. It wasn't looking to attack, so much as coming in search of its kind. For a second Shelley hesitated, then looked over at her boss and Blacher arguing over what each thought the point of their project was.

And she surreptitiously sent a thought with her power.

* * *

The wall of the cellar slid open with a sudden hiss of air that set Nigeki's nerves on edge. For a second he stood staring down the blindingly white hall, wondering what had just happened. He'd found the keypad after a minute of looking, but the code…his fingers had seemed to move all by themselves.

But it didn't matter. He finally knew where Mei and Satsuki had been taken and he had some of his strength back. If anyone got in his way, they'd regret it. Nigeki slipped into the hallway and made his way past doors and down corners, looking for any sign of where they might be holding captives.

For minutes on end he wandered through the passages with nothing to guide him besides minimalist signs on the various doors. "Storage 1," "Storage 2," "Office – K"…When he heard footsteps he would duck into the darkness of the nearest deep doorway and wait as their owners went past. He kept hoping for someone he could interrogate to find where prisoners were kept, but all three times the feet belonged to robotic guards. They were like the ones he'd fought at Witch's Knoll, but thinner, leaner, and the look in the red eyes peering out of their sloped faces seeming even more vicious. If his kind didn't have an affinity for hiding in shadows he was sure he would've been caught.

But after a while Nigeki passed a window set into one wall. Inside was a tall glass tube full of a green liquid, and inside that was a man, tall, muscular and broad-shouldered. Long red hair billowed out around his head. At the bottom of the tube was an ECG monitor, and across the top if it in white letters was a name.

BELMONT.

Belmont? As in…?

Then the man's eyes flicked open and zeroed in on Nigeki. His face was expressionless but he seemed to stare holes right through the vampire. Nigeki backed away and ran off down the corridor as quick as he could, somehow afraid the man would alert the complex they had an intruder.

What was it about him? Was it the strength of his build, or the force in his eyes alone that told Nigeki he'd be a force to be reckoned with?

Or was it just the name?

Suddenly his sharp ears picked up the sound of a gun being cocked and he threw himself to the ground before a wave of bullets ripped into the end of the hall. He leopard-crawled around the corner and wasn't surprised by the pair of security robots charging down at him, and the sadistic laugh from behind.

"That's you, isn't it, bloodsucker?!" the voice of BB Hood cut through the air. "Thought you had me beat so you tracked me down to try and finish me off, I bet! Let me tell you something, though: you got all your powers from your species or curses or whatever, but humans got to be on top because we're the most inventive and adaptable!"

Nigeki didn't reply to her bragging. He was in no mood to banter with his enemies. As the pair of robot guards closed in he only said one word.

" **Henshin**."

* * *

Red light surged through the halls for a second as Bloodstone's armor flowed out and solidified over Nigeki. The veins crisscrossing the armor seemed to throb angrily before his mask appeared and locked itself around his face.

The pair of guard robots were knocked down by the force of his summoning and spewed sparks from their joints, but got up and pressed their attack. Both leveled their arms at him and compartments opened in their wrists, firing off steel cables tipped with three-pronged grappling hooks. Bloodstone hacked two of them off with the blade on one gauntlet but the other two lodged in his shoulder and hip. Powerful electrical current ripped down the cable and into the vampire's body, making him jerk and spasm violently.

A cry of pain half-escaped from his throat but then the yellow eyes in his mask blazed as the primal hunter brought out by his transformation took over completely. He leveled one clenched fist at the robot and his belt's threatening voice called out, " **Crimson Binder!** " Slimy red strands spewed from his knuckles and coated the cables, muffling the current and also wrapping around the robot like a pulsing red cocoon. Freed from the electricity Bloodstone yanked his arm back, pulling the robot to him and smashed his fist into its torso with an echoing crunch. The cables snapped as it went skidding down the hall.

It picked itself up off the floor, only looking a little dented. The other was already on top of Bloodstone. Its hands flipped back and revealed a pair of screeching buzzaws that it swung at the vampire. Sparks and tiny hunks of red sludge flew from the impacts but Bloodstone turned the next of the robot's swings aside with a vicious swipe of his gauntlet's blade. It sliced right through one arm at the elbow and left a ragged gash across the robot's torso. Before the mechanized guard could plan another attack, he dashed and shoulder-checked it into a wall.

The buzzsaw raked against his forehead, startling Bloodstone for just a fraction of a second but it was enough for the robot to squirm free and reveal another weapon. A panel flicked up in its chest and Bloodstone jumped back a step, expecting a giant laser cannon like the ones from before. Instead it was a weapon with a large central barrel and another sticking out of each corner.

Instead of a beam it shot streams of a grey goo that splattered against Bloodstone's chest and started to sizzle like acid, while at the same time starting to…solidify? Within seconds it had turned into something like hard rubber attached to his chest and still burning away at it. The robot reeled him in.

…and Bloodstone let out a cry as Hood came around the corner and grinned sadistically as she fired a submachine gun down the hall and peppered the vampire as well as the robot guard with bullets that burst into flame as they made impact. Bloodstone cried out again in rage and shot a murderous glare back at Hood, but she just loaded another clip and pulled the trigger.

Bloodstone's armor was covered in flames at the back and being eaten away the robot's acidic glue from the other side. He pulled away and the rubbery strand started to creak when another one just like it splattered against his arm and started to drag him in the direction of the other robot, like they were trying to pull him apart.

" **Soul Cutter!** " his belt screamed and blazed, filling the entire hallway with a blinding red light. The robots froze, their sensors overwhelmed, and Hood screamed and turned away, afraid she'd be blinded the intensity of the light. While they were distracted Bloodstone howled like the angry predator he was and lashed out with the blade on his gauntlet, glowing white-hot against the red light.

The blade grew even wider as it sliced mercilessly into both robots, even the one who was down at the end of the hall. An impossibly thin white line was left passing through both of them and even the wall behind them. Bloodstone swung his other blade and sliced through them a second time through their legs. Then with a scream of victory he slashed one more time through their torsos. White power flowed down the lines he'd cut to the tip of the blade and as it did their bodies started to disintegrate. When the burst of light from the start of his attack cleared there was nothing to mark the guards' presence but trails of charred silver dust on the floor.

But no sooner had the light cleared than a mini-missile screamed through the air at him. Bloodstone ducked but it exploded as soon as it was right over him, and even through the noise of the blast he could hear Hood shrieking with laughter.

The vampire stood up shakily. Shrapnel was buried in the back of his armor which was already crumbling from all the incendiary ammo she'd hit him with.

Bloodstone staggered drunkenly to his right, but as she fired again he suddenly lunged left surprising speed and vaulted off the wall. As he went flying past he wrenched the missile launcher out of Hood's hands and crushed it in his own. She'd fallen for a feint…maybe her kind had gotten where they were thanks to their ability to invent instruments of death, but beings like him _were_ instruments of death.

"You know I have more toys than that to share with you!" Hood laughed and produced what looked like a jumprope from her cape. But Bloodstone didn't waste words on her; the part of him that was Nigeki Hitoribo was for the moment totally absorbed by the part that thought himself to be a noble beast. One that didn't deign to acknowledge the words of a lowly scavenger like her, who killed monsters to harvest their remains.

For once her maniacal grin faded, but as she unfurled her toy and started to twirl it, setting the rope glowing, a huge metal shutter suddenly crashed down between them.

"Gaaarrgh!" Bloodstone screamed and pounded on it with his fists, leaving massive dents in the metal. The blade on the end of one gauntlet extended but he lowered his arm as he felt a strange sensation in his mind. Something reminding him he came here to find something besides a human to tear apart. He turned toward it, and behind him, clutching her head to focus the telepathic power she was bringing to bear on the armored vampire, were Shelley Frank and Reed Crawley.

"It's you, isn't it?" he asked Bloodstone. "You're the 'big brother' those two girls are talking about who they can smell from across the base."

The vampire's eyes surged with anger for a second sending a painful surge into Shelley's mind and she backed off with a gasp. But then he let his armor melt away and his mask release, leaving a dirt-smeared teen. He'd already used up a lot of the blood he'd drank, and if these humans were trying something by acting friendly, it'd go better if he played along.

That didn't mean his patience wasn't wearing thin, though. "Take me to them. Now," Nigeki said.

"That was the plan, son," Reed replied.

* * *

The two girls had been huddling together for what little protection and hope that provided them. It had been hours since they'd been given their tiny ration of blood.

"Is this breakfast or supper?" Mei, the one who was just two years out of diapers, had asked, as she always did.

"I don't know. When was the last time we even saw the sun out?" Satsuki, the older sister by five years, had replied, as she always did. She knew she was supposed to be brave and encouraging her sister through their experience, but she honestly couldn't remember how long ago these humans had taken them, and locked them in this room.

Every day she felt them probing inside her brain with telepathy, mapping how a vampire brain was different from a human brain, or so they said. At first Mei had screamed and thrown herself against the walls and door when it happened. Now she just clung to Satsuki and whimpered lightly as the scientists did what they said was to help monsters and humans coexist.

Then less than an hour ago, Satsuki had noticed a bizarre scent coming through the ventilation. Mei had noticed it too, and asked her sister to tell her why it seemed familiar.

"I don't know," Satsuki had replied, wanting to just give in to exhaustion and hope the humans would have what they wanted and finally let them go when she woke up. But Mei had glared at her and bit her on the arm.

"Yes you do! Tell me! I don't know how yet!" Mei wailed. Satsuki had sighed and sniffed the air. Trying to place the scenes.

"Something like stale blood, I guess…? But muddy…and…"

"Home!" Mei interrupted her with excitement. "It smells like home, right?"

"Yes, I think it does. Like the rest of the family."

It was almost comical the way Mei clung to the bars of their cell and bounced up on and down, her older sister thought. But it had been Satsuki's own fault. She shouldn't have said anything…shouldn't have let Mei get her hopes up.

But then there was the hiss of air of the door to the hall opening. The pair of humans who'd been probing their brains came in, smiling and waving to the two young vampires as always, trying to make friends and telling them they were going to be part of something great.

Satsuki sighed and covered her face with her knees. "If you're not going to let us out, just leave us alone," she moaned.

"KAI!" Mei suddenly exclaimed, and Satsuki looked up in surprise. Behind the two scientists was a filthy third person and for a second he might've been their older brother. After a second's observation he wasn't nearly tall or broad enough, but something underneath all that dirt looked familiar anyway.

"It's not your lucky night. You only get **me** ," he said, but smiled.

"ONII-SAN!" Mei wailed and pulled on the bars, but they'd been made to resist even a vampire's inhuman strength. Satsuki protectively pulled her little sister back from the bars until he came closer, and she could see for herself.

"Nigeki…is it really you?" she gasped, her throat suddenly dry.

The door slid open and the two scientists backed away from their companion, who sank to his knees and held out his hands. The pair of girls screamed in relief and ran into his arms, tears dripping from their eyes as they wrapped themselves around their him and rubbed their faces against him as if he might disappear if they didn't hold on tight enough. After a few minutes Satsuki wiped her eyes and managed to let go. Mei clung to his chest, and obligingly Nigeki held her close as he stood up.

"You're here to take us home, right?" Mei asked, as if still not believing what was happening.

"Just a minute," Reed interrupted. "I know this hasn't been the most pleasant experiment, but please consider the good that can come out of this."

Nigeki whirled toward him, eyes flashing angrily. " **GOOD?** " he hissed through his fangs.

Shelley replied, "We're working on finding a cure for vampirism. It's not pleasant but think about it for a minute, would you please? I know AGES didn't bring them here under the most pleasant circumstances, but adult vampires would've been too powerful to contain. Once we can find a cure, there won't be any need for your kind to hide, because people won't need to fear you for your condition anymore."

" **Condition?!** " Nigeki bellowed. The two scientists shrank back a step. Satsuki looked up at him in alarm but Mei was grinning into his chest. " **We were born this way! So were OUR parents! And THEIR parents! AND THEIR PARENTS!**...We don't want your cure. Show us a way out. Now."

* * *

Without another word the two human scientists had revealed an exit to the street. Nigeki carried both of his sisters with him as he left the base behind, casting one withering glare over his shoulder at Reed and Shelley, who looked back with disappointment and, he hoped, a glimmer of shame.

His sharp ears heard police sirens drawing closer…when he destroyed those robot guards he'd probably cut into the wall and shaken things up enough to do some damage on the surface. Good. If they found AGES' base then Hood and whatever other psychos were down there would have to clear out.

Nigeki slipped away into the shadows for what felt like the fiftieth time that night, though. His sisters had fallen asleep against him, but for twenty minutes he dodged through alleys and side streets, weaving back and forth across the small town until he felt sure he'd lost anything that might've followed them out of the AGES base.

By the time he finally got to Daphne's back door, Nigeki wasn't exactly surprised to see Mizore sitting outside waiting for him. Her lovely face, smooth like ice, was impossible to read. He was sure she'd be mad at him for ditching her, but as he came up carrying two young girls against himself, she just nodded at him and opened the door to carry them inside and up to the room the Aoyamas were lending him.

Nothing was said until after Nigeki tucked the two in and emerged in a clean shirt and shorts. Nigeki broke the silence with a sigh. "I'm sorry I left you behind when I went to find my sisters. I know you came along because you wanted to help," he said, and grabbed Mizore's wrist as she tried to slap him. "But I'm not sorry I kept an important friend of mine out of danger. And I never will be."

He let her go and she retreated a step. A second later she whispered, "…important?"

"Of course you are. I need you working behind the scenes to help me be the best Phantom the school's ever going to see," he replied.

"…is that all?"

He smiled and ruffled her long lavender hair. "No." Mizore smiled around her lollipop.

"What else?" she asked a little expectantly.

"We'll have to find out when we get somewhere human terrorists aren't trying to kill us," was Nigeki's answer. "But for now, I think we've all earned some sleep. Goodnight."

She tried to follow him into his bedroom and frowned in disappointment when he unwittingly closed the door on her. Nigeki barely had time to swallow his hypnocil pill to keep from dreaming and fall asleep on the floor, snuggled between his little sisters.

What a night he'd had.

* * *

It felt like he'd been floating for eternity. Finally, he had known peace.

Again and again he'd risked his life to bring peace to others, fighting incredibly powerful foes every time. Hadn't he earned peace for himself?

But not long ago he'd felt something disturbing his rest…calling him back to the world of chaos. To the world of monsters.

Gradually over what seemed like eternity it had seemed like he was being pulled along somewhere, but suddenly it felt as if he was caught in the current of a raging river of emerald-green water. He thrashed around and tried to breathe, knowing that for all his strength he was doomed if he couldn't…

Then the river was gone and he was standing inside of some of transparent tube. A bearded man in a dark suit stood outside, and smiled with relief as he opened his eyes and pressed his hands against the tube.

"I'm sorry for bringing you back so suddenly," the man in the dark suit said, his accent strange but his words understandable enough. "It would seem we've been compromised, unfortunately, and you are far, far too valuable to risk leaving behind, my friend."

"Who are you…?" he asked as the tube started to rise. As he tried to step out from under it he staggered. His body was strong, but nothing seemed to respond to his thoughts…it was if he was trying to use it for the first time.

"There'll be time to explain that once we're away. Welcome back to the land of the living, Simon."


	15. Chapter 15: Big Brother

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 15 – Big Brother**

"Morning, everyone," Ryosuke mumbled as he shuffled into the kitchen of his restaurant, wearing nothing but his boxers and his eyes seeming to stare right through the crowd at the breakfast table.

Then he realized there was indeed a crowd at the breakfast table. "Erm, hello…sweetie, where did all these people come from?"

"Good morning to you, sir!" Ruby said a little overenthusiastically.

"Hi, mister!" Mei grinned as she shoveled food into her mouth while Satsuki watched disapprovingly.

"Eat like a lady," she chided her little sister. Mei glared at her, flecks of food all over her mouth then started chewing it with her mouth wide open.

"Mei, **stop being a brat** ," Nigeki interrupted. Mei looked up at him in alarm, then nodded and swallowed her food with a guilty look on her face. Takano came over with a pan of burnt blackened discs on it that looked like they'd probably been eggs. Nigeki and his sisters recoiled slightly from them, but Ruby grinned and slid one onto her plate.

"I think they're the people our new employees came to find, tou-san," Takano replied with a smile, her silvery hair dancing.

Ryosuke nodded, his eyes going bleary again and seeming unready to deal with this kind of chaos in his kitchen this early in the morning. "Oh," he muttered. "All right. I need to go…shave." And he turned around and walked back upstairs.

Once he was gone Nigeki turned to Satsuki and gently ran his fingers through her short black hair. "Are you two okay?" he asked softly, not wanting to make them remember too much about what they'd just escaped from.

She nodded gently and placed her hand on the back of his. "They didn't hurt or abuse us, onii-san," she replied. "Sometimes people came in who wanted to, but those humans wanted us not to be monsters anymore, so humans wouldn't try to hurt us."

He growled faintly. "They have no right."

"I don't know if they do," Satsuki replied. "Right now, I just want to go home."

Nigeki nodded slowly. "I tried calling but I only got the butler. Dad and Kai are off exploring what they think is a Tear nest, and mom hasn't come out of her room for a week…dad's not even sleeping with her anymore. I couldn't even get Mills. He's working with some new consultant. Doctor Sands or somebody."

"At least they're working on the project," Satsuki replied, gently putting her hand on her brother's arm reassuringly.

Both of them looked over as Mei snatched one of the blackened eggs, but gently waved off the offer when Takano tried to offer Nigeki to take one too. "So, Hitoribo-san…now that you've found your family, will be you be leaving already?" Takano tried to ask gracefully.

"I don't really know. I didn't think about it till just now but I have no idea how to call and tell them to get us since we're done," Nigeki replied with a sigh. "So we might be here for a little while…how's the egg, Ruby?"

The witch chewed hard on it and made an "Mmmm-MMMM!" noise, nodding, probably not wanting to seem like a bad guest. He looked down at Mei next, who grinned the widest grin he'd ever seen, blotches of black egg all over her teeth. Satsuki gasped in disgust at her sister, but Nigeki couldn't help letting out a snort of amusement.

Takano stood up then, walked over to a counter and wrote something down on a piece of paper, thought for a second, then wrote a bunch of other things down underneath it. "What's that?" Nigeki asked as he leaned back in his chair.

"Shopping list!" Takano beamed. "Since you're staying for a little while, you can pick up a couple things we need," she explained and waved the slip of paper at him.

"You mean there's more after all that stuff I got **last** night?" Nigeki asked, waving to the pile of vegetable crates and huge bags of rice piled in front of the back door. He hadn't exactly had time to be graceful about stacking them.

"That was from one supplier," Takano clarified. "I can think of a few other things we're running low on, like meat and a little fish, but these are things you can just pick up from the Junes downtown."

Mei grinned. "Is your girlfriend coming with us?" she asked and looked up at Ruby.

"What?" the witch asked, color rushing to her cheeks.

"She's not my girlfriend," Nigeki replied, trying to keep his patience. "We only met last night."

" _I'm_ his girlfriend," Mizore softly interjected.

" _Nobody_ is my girlfriend."

She ruffled his hair and smirked. "It's cute how you get all embarrassed and can't talk about it to anybody."

Nigeki gave her an exasperated look, but Mizore only made happy eyes and stuck her tongue out at him. Finally he stood up. "We can probably get all this and make it back before the lunch rush if we go now…what do you say, girls?"

His sisters didn't say anything. They just grabbed him by the wrists and dragged him out the back door.

* * *

The truck tires squealed as Nigeki awkwardly took a hard turn. His family had never let him do anything remotely dangerous, like drive. Seeing him like this with his sisters in the cab of a truck he could barely control, his family would've lost their minds.

Mei bounced up and down in her seat in excitement, her brown pigtails swaying with a rhythm of their own. Satsuki clung to her brother's arm until they straightened out, then sighed in relief.

"What? I'm not **that** bad, am I?" Nigeki joked.

"No," she said, but suddenly asked. "How's mom doing? It's been a while since…"

He tickled under her chin for a second to keep her from finishing the sentence. But his face turned serious. "I don't know, but it sounded like she wasn't doing so good a while after you disappeared on that shopping trip. Now that you two are okay I should really call in and let everybody know you're all right. Mom's gonna be glad."

"Yeah," Satsuki replied, and looked down at her feet.

"Is everything all right?" Nigeki asked her. She just shook her head, so he changed the subject. "You getting any better on the violin?"

"No," Satsuki replied looking disappointed, then brightened up. "But I got a new tutor for the piano, and papa says I'm doing very well on that."

"She is!" Mei grinned.

"Thank you, Mei," Satsuki smiled gently. "Are you any better on the flute…?"

"No, I still suck," Nigeki replied. Mei giggled, and Satsuki smiled lightly herself.

Mizore reached over the back of Nigeki's seat and rubbed gently at his shoulders with her long, ice-cold fingers. "He's getting to be a pretty good actor, though," she said.

"Yeah, after all the fights I got into, people won't even have to come to our play to see how I scary I can be," Nigeki frowned.

"I meant the way you act like you stand those other girls who always try to hang around you," she smirked and tweaked his ear. He sighed, but his sisters giggled. Instead he pulled into the lot of the enormous building with the red letters spelling JUNES on the roof, and circled it looking for a close place to park. It seemed like half the town was coming or going from the store, pushing carts or, in the case of a few unfortunate young men he spotted, carrying a stack of bags and boxes for their unencumbered girlfriends.

Finally he managed to park and led the way into the gigantic supermarket taking up most of the first floor and unfolded the shopping list. "Okay we need some…mackerel, and beef strips and cucumbers? I **got** cucumbers last night. And some kind of deluxe curry…can you read this, Mizore?...Mizore?"

He looked around through the crowd but she seemed to have disappeared along with his little sisters. For a second Nigeki started to panic, afraid that Hood or some other AGES killer had tracked them down, but then his eagle eyes spotted Mei running ahead of the other two, toward an escalator leading up to the "CLOTHING" department.

Nigeki sighed, but couldn't help smiling a bit. Wasn't it just like a little sister?

* * *

 **(Song: Dating Start!)**

" **Thank** you for shopping with us today at Junes!" the voice of an overly chirpy hostess rang out over the PA. "Prices on our new water-conserving appliances have been slashed by 15%! Our catering department is ready to serve at your next party or function! Remember…" she trailed over, then was joined by a chorus of chirpy singing voices, " _Every day is great at your Junes!_ "

"I want this too!" Mei squealed as she hopped out of the changing room in a pink sun dress spangled with little yellow flowers and a straw hat on her head.

Nigeki sighed inwardly. He agreed his sisters couldn't go around in those dirty hospital gowns, but they weren't supposed to be filling out their summer wardrobe either. "Girls, dad didn't give me a lot of money for school…I was **at school** , it's not something you need a lot of money for."

"Does that mean I can't get this?" Satsuki said as she dragged him over to look at a small locket with a black stone carving of a bearded serpentine dragon under the jewelry counter. Nigeki looked at the price tag and grimaced.

"Girls, I'm sure mom and dad'll be happy to get you anything you want. But right now me and Mizore are supposed to be helping out at the restaurant so—"

"OOOOOOOH! LOOK AT THIS!" Mei interrupted and hauled him over to display of life-size dolls in pink boxes. A large sign over the artistically-arranged stack of dolls said "AMI-CHAN & MAMI-CHAN".

"Can I get these?" Mei pleaded.

"Mei, we haven't even paid for your new clothes yet!" Nigeki protested. "But all right. Which one do you want?"

"Both!" replied Mei.

"Mei, I don't have that much money, like I just said."

"But they're sisters! They have to be together!" Mei pouted up at him. "Right, Satsuki?"

But Satsuki didn't reply for a second, staring hard at a group of teen girls walking past, swinging their purses and smiling as they chatted or played around with their phones. "Oh, I don't know," she distantly replied. "Aren't **you** supposed to be the big sister to her?"

But Mei didn't hear her. She was already darting away from Ami-chan and Mami-chan and over to where a pile of pink and blue plush bears had been set up for sale, and despite it being three times her size easily picked one up and started carrying it back, drawing stares to the tiny girl with unlikely strength and poise. "Buy me this," she instructed Nigeki.

"Put it back. We'll buy your new clothes, get the food for Daphne and then we'll see about toys," Nigeki replied.

"Toto-chan's not a toy! He's a **friend**!" Mei said with an indignant pout.

"You already gave him a name?" Satsuki asked in playful disbelief.

"I didn't **give** him a name, **it's his name** ," Mei glared at her sister as if it was the stupidest question she'd ever been asked.

Nigeki ignored their playful bantering and looked around. "Did anyone see where Mizore went?"

"I went over there to get these," she said as she popped up from behind a shelf, holding up a package of pink and purple knee socks like the ones she always wore. Nigeki gasped and jumped back in surprise.

"Do you **always** have to do that?" he asked in exasperation.

"Yes. Always," she replied, then smirked. "Because you look so cute when I surprise you."

"Mei, put the bear back. Satsuki, get the tags off those clothes. Mizore, help me find the things we need for Daphne. **After** we get all that taken care of, maybe we'll see about some toys."

"He's a **friend**!" Mei insisted.

Mizore smiled her faint smile as she followed the Hitoribos back downstairs.

* * *

Mei stomped away from the checkout line, face clenched in rage even before the collection of change that represented the last of Nigeki's personal finances hit his hand. She wouldn't be taking Toto-chan home **and** get a new outfit, it seemed.

As they left walked out into the parking lot, though, Mei stopped and looked over at a group of boys about her age standing around in front of a row of a gashapon machines holding small figurines, pretending to fight with them. Then she broke away and ran over to them.

"Mei, wait, we need to get back—" Nigeki tried to protest, but saw that she was smiling excitedly at the things they were playing with.

"Those are Wulars, right?" Mei exclaimed. The figures, shaped like an assortment of monsters, had a row of small buttons underneath an LED meter with an array of numbers. "You've got a Stormister and a Girafire, right?" Mei asked the first boy, who didn't answer. Undaunted she turned to his opponent, "And that's Volture and Blastag!"

"What are those?" Nigeki whispered to Satsuki.

"Oh, they're this toy that's really popular," she answered. "You point them at each other and push the buttons on the back pretend to have them fight. You have to buy them from those machines, so the ones you get are random."

"I see," Nigeki replied. "They show the commercials for those in _Magical Detective Loveline_ , I bet."

"You actually remember the name of that show?" Satsuki chortled.

"It's the only thing Mei would watch…and I remember **you** gasping when she got cornered by a bad guy more than once," Nigeki reminded her with a teasing smirk.

Satsuki blushed and looked away from him. "I did not! Besides, that show's for little kids. _The Pink Princess: Warrior—_ " She started to reply, but a joyous cry cut the air. A boy was running from the machines over to where the little gathering stood, holding a toy dragon over his head. It was covered with blue and purple scales with two heads on long necks reaching out from its body and wide, majestic wings.

"Look! Look! A Brayjan Dragon! I really got one!" The boys crowded around to look at their friend's new find. Mei tried to get a look too, then a second later ran back to where Nigeki and the others waited.

"Can I have some money to get some Wulars too?" she asked hopefully.

Nigeki pulled out the clutch of change and walked over to the machines with her. He filled the coin slots and twisted the knob, sending a capsule rolling out of the machine into Mei's waiting hands.

There was enough for one more, so he fed the machine and again a capsule thundered down the chute and into Mei's hands. She opened them up, revealing figurines of a turtle with ice spikes down the back of its shell, and a purple cat with a butterfly net attached to the end of its tail. Clutching her prizes she ran over to the group of boys and said something, probably asking if she could join in. The boys took one look at her figurines, and burst out laughing.

"Are you kidding?" one of them jeered. "Tortoice is too slow to do anything, and Catrap's the weakest one ever! You'd lose in ten seconds! Those ones SUCK!"

"Oh YEAH?!" Mei yelled back. "These are presents from my big brother! And I'm gonna get really good and I'm gonna win even with these two! So nyah!" She stuck out her tongue and pulled down one eyelid, then ran back to Nigeki. "Let's go. Boys are stupid."

* * *

His sisters had already jumped out of the truck before Nigeki had pulled to a stop. Mei was still wearing the gigantic grin she'd had the whole ride back as she ran inside clutching her precious new Wulars. "You have to help me practice, onee-chan!" she commanded Satsuki, not looking up from the instructions that had come with her new prizes. "What does this mean?" she asked, pointing at one part.

It was 11:33 already and Nigeki had gone as fast as he'd dared on the way back. He was afraid of catching hell from his new boss, especially when he saw people pushing to get in the door. But then he noticed a lot of them seemed to be carrying bouquets…

"What in the hell's going on in there?"

While his sisters retreated upstairs and Mizore went to change into her uniform for the lunch rush that had started without them, Nigeki put the food they'd bought into the fridge and then leaned out the door to the kitchen to see just what was going on out in the dining area.

The room was packed, with every seat occupied and a crowd of young men carrying flowers gathered in the center of the room. Takano walked around the room taking orders and politely ignoring the chaos in the center of the room.

But Nigeki pushed his way through the crowd enough to see what it was, and wasn't surprised at what he found. There stood Ruby Toujo, the pretty young witch he'd agreed to take with him back to Youkai Academy, wearing one of the restaurant's gothic waitress uniforms and a slightly overwhelmed expression as the men surrounding her tried to push their floral offerings into her hands and bombarded with questions about her preference in men and her schedule after work. A few were even brandishing engagement rings.

"Shouldn't we do something?" Nigeki asked his boss as Ryosuke got to work with a grin on his face that could've sliced the vegetables itself.

"Yeah!" he grinned. "Tell them she isn't allowed to flirt on duty, and the one who orders the most expensive meal gets to talk to her first after her shift!"

"That's not what I meant," Nigeki said as a huge sweatdrop formed on the back of his head.

* * *

Ruby heaved a sigh of relief as the last diner finally walked out of the restaurant and Nigeki deftly locked it behind him and flipped the window sign to "CLOSED".

Without even waiting she unzipped her uniform down the back to her waist and sighed again. "Ugh…this thing is so tight," she murmured. She turned and walked out of the dining room to change, oblivious to flashing the back of her pink lace bra at a beet-red Nigeki as she did.

She went up to the room she shared with the other girls and changed back into her own clothing, the pink and black dress. Then she climbed out of the window up onto the roof. Once she was there, she finally felt herself relaxing.

Wither her dying breath, the mistress had said she wanted Ruby to see the world beyond Witch's Knoll. To know more than hatred toward humankind. Today they'd been extremely welcoming. **Too** welcoming after a lifetime spent hiding from them, distrusting them. It had been overwhelming. But up here, she could breathe. She could maybe even start to look forward to going wherever the vampire boy was going back to next, as long as she wasn't attacked by the men there.

"Toujo-san? Is everything all right?" someone asked suddenly. Ruby jumped, then looked down to see Takano looking out the window over at her.

"I'm fine," Ruby replied, sending a wave back. "I just feel so confined inside right now. I think I might…fly. If I still can."

"Oh? Do you think you'd like some company? If I still can, that is," Takano smiled.

Ruby regarded her curiously, but then concentrated on her magic from the first time since her wand had been destroyed, and to her relief her wings sprang from her back. Takano stood beside her, glowing softly. Then her ears doubled in length suddenly like when she'd used her powers before, but this time long fairy wings formed and split gently from her back too.

Slowly, cautiously Ruby took to the air and looked over her shoulder to see Takano easily keeping up with her and trailing golden dust into the air. If it happened to land on open dirt, Ruby swore she saw grass or plants starting to grow.

"What are you?" Ruby asked, slightly in.

She just smiled. "I'm Takano."

"But…what kind of youkai are you?" Ruby persisted.

"Why does it matter?" Takano playfully continued to deflect the question. "That answer's good enough for me, and my dad, and for Koji."

Ruby just flew on for a minute more, thinking on that. Takano flew by her side in silence for a minute before she asked, "Does it matter that people know you're a witch?"

"I studied hard to cultivate my powers! It's not something you're born with, it's something you learn!" Ruby replied defensively.

"And is someone what they are because of what they're born with, or what they choose to do with it?" Takano asked her. Ruby hovering staring at her from that response. Takano turned around made her way back to Daphne.

* * *

Another three days slipped by with no word from home or even from school. Thankfully not from AGES either, though. Mei and Satsuki had been busy enough learning to play Wulars together, and Ruby had been busy enough dodging marriage proposals while trying to help out in the front room.

On that morning Nigeki's eyes flicked open suddenly as he was sure he heard the door click shut. There was a faint rustling as something slithered under the bed. His hunting instincts were starting to prick up when he noticed the ever so slight drop in temperature in the room.

"Come out, Mizore," he sighed. A second later her face poked out from under the bed.

"Hi. You're getting good."

"Come out from there and don't wake up the girls," Nigeki replied. With a consummate grace Mizore did slide out from under the bed and vaulted to her feet, and Nigeki doubted it was an accident her skirt billowed out as she did. "Is everything all right? Why'd you sneak in here?"

"You've been spending all your time with your sisters lately," she whispered as she seemed to glide forward and popped her omnipresent lollipop out of her mouth. "We've been here with none of those annoying other girls you put up with this whole time, and we still haven't done anything," she whispered huskily and draped her arms around his neck. He swallowed as she loomed in.

"Mizore, I don't know if I'm ready for this…remember what happens to the Tear when I get worked up?"

She just chuckled. "I'm not worried. You're not going to hurt me."

"That isn't **me** ," Nigeki protested.

"I know," she whispered, then pursed her lips…

Then Nigeki slipped on the carpet and flailed for something to stop his fall. The thing he grabbed was round, warm and soft, and made Mizore's face turn pink as she collapsed on top of him.

"I knew it," she purred into his ear and stroked his cheek with trembling fingers.

"It was an accident!" Nigeki protested, but before things could progress any farther suddenly someone screamed loud enough Nigeki could see birds taking off in fright from the tree outside the window. A second later there was a knock like a machine gun on the door.

"Come in!" Nigeki called. Mizore grunted in annoyance and flexed her fingers at the door, forming a sheet of ice over the knob that started to stretch toward the doorframe too, but before it could reach all the way Takano flung the door open, grinning like made and still clutching the receiver to a cordless phone. "Good news?" Nigeki asked while Mizore glared icy daggers at her.

"Koji just called! He's going to be back this afternoon! It's **wonderful**!" Takano replied, not noticing at all. "Oh…and a strange man with a cigar is outside asking if you need a ride yet."

"What?" Nigeki pulled away from Mizore and leaned out the window, spotting the Youkai Academy school bus. The driver was leaning against the side puffing lightly on a cigar, eyes glowing under the brim of his cap. He glanced up and smiled, tipping his cigar at Nigeki in a mock salute.

Mei sat up on the bed, yawning and knuckling the sleep out of her eyes. She still clutched her Tortoice figure, determined to become one with it in battle. "What's wrong?" she said through a yawn.

"Nothing's wrong," Nigeki answered. "But I think it's time for us to go."

"Call us when you get where you need to go…all right?" Takano asked, her face falling.

"Where are we going?" Mizore asked, resigned to her attempt having failed. "Back to school already?"

"No," Nigeki asked, looking down at his little sister. "We're going home."

* * *

 **Hey. Sorry if these last two chapters seemed kind of short. They were originally one big chapter, but I broke it up when I thought about how the change in mood was a little too drastic with nothing to break things up.**

 **Sorry to anybody who's disappointed by the lack of action in this chapter, but sometimes I want to take some time to have some interplay between the differebt characters. There's a bunch already, and I want to take the time to make the things developing between them meaningful too. Sorry if this means sometimes we don't see somebody's favorite character for a while, or go a chapter without any fights, but if the character's time in the spotlight is more meaningful, I think it's probably worth it in the long run.**

 **Also, for what it's worth the people at the restaurant aren't OC's. They were tweaked just a bit from the source material.**

 **Hope you enjoyed!**


	16. Chapter 16: Sacred Gear

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 16 – Sacred Gear**

It had been a long time since they'd lost sight of Takano and Ryosuke waving goodbye out of the rear window of the bus. The monster entourage had split up, Nigeki sitting near the front and looking through his schoolbooks, trying to do something to catch up on the material he'd missed while he was gone. Mei and Satsuki had taken the seat behind him and were playing with Mei's new game, the Wulars.

Mizore took the seat across the aisle from Nigeki, keeping silent but shooting him the occasional knowing smile. Ruby Toujo, the witch they'd picked up during their little adventure was there too. She sat all the way in the back, staring at the window in silence.

After a while Nigeki called out to the driver, "Are you sure you don't need us to tell you where to go?"

The driver shook the ashes off his cigar out the window. "I drive, kid. It's what I do. You just worry about what **you** do."

"And what's that supposed to be?"

"Hell if I know…don't you?" the driver smirked.

Nigeki gave him a probing look but the driver just tweaked his rearview mirror so he couldn't see the young vampire in it anymore, and Nigeki settled back in with his book. He found it hard to focus, and after a while of trying, he realized why.

When he'd been away at Youkai Academy he'd been learning in an actual class, studying alongside other teenage monsters who were enjoying their freedom and just as unsure what to do with it as he was. A place where he'd been among friends.

But now he was going home. His real home, although that didn't sound like the right word anymore. There, when he studied he was with one tutor or another, kept carefully occupied as far away from the rest of the family as possible. Especially from his mother, who'd apparently gotten even more disturbed since his sisters had been captured by AGES. Would this help her recover? And would she even be grateful to him if she did?

All at once he noticed the bus suddenly picking up speed, and the sky turned into an umbrella of crazed shifting colors. Ruby gasped in surprise and Mei and Satsuki looked up as she did. Nigeki and Mizore stayed quiet, as they recognized what was going on from their trips to and from school.

They were passing through the borders of Makai Realm, the world of monsters.

When the sky cleared it was no longer blue, but a faint orange. The bus was driving down a cobbled road surrounded by towering trees, but even through them the roof and the spear-like towers of an exquisite mansion could be seen.

Mei and Satsuki gasped in excitement and pressed their faces against the glass of the window. Nigeki swore he heard the driver let out a "heh," but he ignored it and got up to slip his arms around his sisters. "We're almost home, girls," he said.

A few minutes later the bus stopped outside the wrought-iron gate of the stone wall surrounding the mansion. The driver flung the door open and turned back to the passengers, his cigar sticking out of one side of his smile. "Didn't I tell you I could find the place?"

"Thanks," Nigeki said simply. The Hitoribos and Mizore gathered up their things and got off, but Ruby stayed in her seat.

"Aren't you coming with us?" Mei asked.

The witch sighed and shook her head. "No. I'd just get in the way if I were around when you meet your family again. I think I'll be going on to this school of yours…see what it's like."

"Awww," Mei groaned. "Be our friend on Frightbook, okay, Ruby?"

"As soon someone shows me what that is," the witch replied with a tired smile. "We'll meet again," she said to Nigeki. Then the bus door closed, and pulled away.

* * *

Moka Akashiya peeled the shirt of her PE uniform off her smooth, glistening skin and set it aside with the rest before she stepped into the shower room with the rest of the girls in her class, taking one of the stalls for students who could only bathe safely in purified water.

She was a little surprised to see the bright blue hair of Kurumu Kurono in the stall next to her. They belonged to the same school club but weren't exactly close for reasons that were no mystery, especially after being split onto different teams for the soccer game in class.

So she was more than a little surprised when Kurumu looked over and said, "Hey, that was a pretty good game."

"Um, thank you," Moka replied. Struggling for something to say in reply, she asked, "Are…things okay with your mom? Does she still—"

"Does she still ask if I found my soulmate yet?" Kurumu asked with a dry laugh. "Sometimes. It doesn't really bother me as much now."

"Oh?" Moka asked, a little unsettled by the implication that something had happened to make Kurumu less worried about her mother probing into her love life.

The succubus just smiled to herself and started to rub her ample chest with soap. "Yeah…so how's that story of yours about the new Security Committee coming?"  
"It isn't," Moka frowned. "The new chief won't even talk to me. She just asks if I'm there to join, and when I say no she asks if there's a problem she needs to deal with, then when I say no to that she just closes the door."

She squeaked in alarm suddenly as something warm and wet rubbed down her back, and turned around to see a slight figure rubbing a handful of suds against her side while holding a tube of liquid soap in her other hand, which slid up to cup the side of her of breast. "Moka-sama…you're so beautiful," gushed a blushing Yukari Sendou, the witch prodigy who'd become smitten with her. "May I please wash your back?" she asked, the air around her face seeming to fill with sparkles. Before Moka could give an answer, the tube of soap slipped out of her hand. Yukari walked away to pick it up, and Moka sighed lightly to herself.

She tried to remind herself that she was finally out on her after coming to Youkai Academy, and should be enjoying having some freedom and the friends she was making here. Like Yukari, and to an extent even Kurumu. But somehow the campus had seemed empty since the first friend she'd made had left on an errand from the Headmaster. Was he all right? When would he be back? And why had Kurumu acted like she knew more than Moka did…?

"Clean?" asked a high-pitched voice from behind her, interrupting her thoughts.

"…what? Oh, all right, Yukari. If it's that important," Moka said distantly. There was a squeal of delight and she heard Yukari bouncing from one foot to the other on the wet floor. Then a stream of soapy water suddenly whipped down Moka's back, making her jump and squeal in surprise. "Yukari, that's not—" Moka started to protest, but as she turned around she saw it wasn't Yukari.

It was a small monster that looked like a turtle with four stubby legs and a round head, but its body looked like a small bathtub, complete with frothing water and a yellow rubber duck inside a glass bubble over its back. Its tail spun like a crank as it spewed another stream of water at her, but Moka screamed and dodged out of the way. A second later the intruder found the eyes of every girl in the class on it.

"Clean?" it asked timidly.

Then, predictably, all hell broke loose.

* * *

The gate of the Hitoribo estate opened and Nigeki led his small procession up the drive. As they neared the main house they spotted a pair of men crossing the property from a corner behind some trees. Both wore dark pants, turtlenecks, thick boots and backpacks, like they'd been trekking recently. They were talking to each other and didn't see Nigeki and the others until he called out to them.

One of them was older with a thick beard, once black but flecks of silver could be seen throughout it now. His walk had been slow and his feet dragged, with his eyelids seeming to hang lower from exhaustion. The other man was much younger, in his early twenties. He was sharp-eyed and walking with a powerful stride. His dark hair had a white streak across the front that hung raggedly across one side of his face, that almost could've been Nigeki's.

And he scowled as he recognized Nigeki. His expression only softened a little as he saw who else was with him.

"PAPA!" Mei and Satsuki dashed over to the bearded man, who sank to his knees and wrapped the girls up in his arms. The younger man looked down at them for a second before turning his harsh gaze back on Nigeki.

"Did you get kicked out of school already, **little brother**?" he asked acidly.

"Nice to see you missed me too, Kai," Nigeki replied. "Not like I'm here to bring anybody home…"

Kai ignored the remark and turned to Mizore. "Welcome to our home. May I ask who you might be, my lovely lady?"

"I'm his wife," she replied, deadpan as usual.

"…What?"

Nigeki gave her a look of exasperation. " **No** , Mizore."

"Break it up, you two!" their father interrupted as he got to his feet. "Like it or not, the two of you are family! **Act like it** ," he barked, but then his face softened. "Nigeki, why didn't you tell us you found the girls?"

"I **tried** , tou-san, but the butler said you and Kai were investing Tears, and Mills was working on something with a new consultant you brought in," Nigeki protested.

"Never mind," his father waved it off. "Go inside and let your mother now the girls are back safe. Kai, find a place for Nigeki's friend to stay while they're here." Kai looked at his father and then back over his shoulder at Nigeki and Mizore. " **Now** , young man," his father glowered.

Kai walked up to the front door and with a last look over her shoulder, Mizore followed him. Nigeki walked to his father and whispered, "Tou-san, are you sure it's a good idea having me be the one?"

"Maybe things between you two can finally start to heal if she hears you were the one who brought back the girls," his father replied and clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Go on, son. It's about time we tried to put this to rest."

* * *

Mei was trying to get Satsuki to play another round of Wulars with her as Nigeki took them through the halls, passing the serving staff but also numerous people carrying pieces of machinery or stacks of charts and reports, all part of his father's project to study the Tears, monsters who were a mystery even to monsters. He wondered if one of them was the Doctor Sands that his other brother was collaborating with…

As they walked along Nigeki found himself walking more slowly, and he already knew why. Since the moment he'd left the womb, his mother had seen him as an abomination. She'd supported her husband's decision to hunt down the Tears, seeing them as the greatest threat to their world. Most of the time, Nigeki's father had said, it seemed like she'd blocked the memory of his existence whenever he wasn't around.

Well, maybe his father was right. Maybe finding his little sisters would help heal things between him and his mother. He took a hard breath to steel himself before he pushed open the double doors of their mother's bedroom.

Light barely seeped through a pair of gauzy curtains outlining a window in the far wall. Laying in a regal bed with ice-white silk sheets was a pale woman whose blonde hair lay arrayed around her body like a sunburst. It was Amelia Hitoribo, their mother.

"Girls, go on," Nigeki gently urged them while he hung back. They looked up at him uncertainly for a second, then walked over to the side of the bed.

"Kaa-san?" Satsuki asked. "Are you okay? We're home…we're all right!"

Gently Amelia lifted a thin hand and waved at them dismissively. "Go away. You're not real," she breathed. "None of you are ever real…but I keep letting my hopes rise…again and again…again…again…" she went on, tears starting to pool in the corners of her eyes.

Mei suddenly grabbed her hand and licked from wrist to fingertip. Her mother gasped and pulled it away, sitting up suddenly and staring at the girls beside her bed. Then the tears that had been growing slid down her cheeks leaving glistening trails on her pale skin behind them. "Girls…?" she asked, afraid of letting her hopes be crushed again.

They climbed in bed next to her, grinning and laughing and clutching at their mother's arms. Amelia let out a sob that seemed to hang in the air for minutes on end as she gathered up her daughters and held them close against her, hardly daring to believe that this time it was real. Nigeki watched silently from the doorway, wondering if he'd even been noticed but not wanting to push her with his presence. At least not yet.

After a few minutes Amelia calmed down enough to speak. "Where…where have you two been?"

"Some humans took us!" Mei blurted out, and Amelia gasped.

"What she means is…they distracted the governess," Satsuki interrupted. "They took us to this place, but we got away a few days ago."

"Nigeki got me these!" Mei beamed and held up her new and already scuffed Wular toys. "Aren't they great?!"

"Nigeki," their mother replied in a hollow voice. He cringed, sure of what came next. She slowly shifted her gaze to the door and the figure standing there. She gasped in horror and recoiled back to the edge of her bed, holding her daughters close against her.

"Hello, kaa-san," he said softly, but while bracing himself.

"I'M NOT YOUR MOTHER!" she shrieked at him, shaking the glass in the windows. "YOUR MOTHER'S THAT FILTHY THING THAT ATTACKED ME…POISONED ME!"

"He saved us, mama!" Mei protested.

"No, he didn't!" Amelia wailed and huddled her daughters against her. "He's one of them! He'll kill us! He'll destroy everything!"

He turned and walked off down the hall, wondering why he'd let himself get his hopes up.

* * *

Nigeki wandered down the halls listlessly, looking down at all the familiar pictures, doors, decorations. He remembered every inch from when he was a child and staying out of his parents' way. But now it all seemed so strange and foreign, like a house he'd never even seen before.

What was going on? He'd lived his entire life here.

Hadn't he?

He'd grown up in this house. Being ostracized by his older brother and even his own mother, where his father tried to respect him but was usually too busy running the household or as time passed studying the Tears to be available to him. Where he had to be kept safely out of the way and avoid exposure to any and all negative emotions to keep the Tear within him from growing stronger.

The door to his room creaked open. Obviously they hadn't bothered to keep it oiled while he was gone, but who would blame them? Inside were bare walls, no pictures or posters or shelves with trophies. There was a low bookshelf by the wall full of nondescript books he'd read but never enjoyed. Dry classics his parents…or rather, his father had gotten him without knowing what his interests were. But then, Nigeki had never really had a chance to know what his interests were either, having to keep a distance from everyone.

Then they'd given him the chance to leave the house, because it had finally become too much of an ordeal to keep him at home. And he'd made friends, gotten himself involved in activities and even danger. But for the first time, he'd truly been able to live.

He checked the time. Well into the afternoon. Classes would be out at Yuokai Academy. With a trembling hand, he hit Toriel's contact on his phone.

"Hello?" her voice came. It sounded so gentle. Patient. Not pressuring or judging.

"Hello, Toriel?" he said, his voice suddenly dry. "It's Nigeki. The vampire. With the belt," he went on, mentally kicking himself for sounding so clueless.

"Oh!" she replied with a gasp of pleasant surprise. "Hello, child! It's good to hear from you! We'd all been getting a little worried if you were all right."

"Really?"

"Oh yes!" she went on. "I'm a little surprised you're calling me and not your classmates to let them know everything's fine. Moka came by this afternoon to ask if I'd heard anything from you. I guess now I have."

Nigeki sighed away from the phone at the question before he answered. "I don't really want to tell anybody about what I did while I was gone. I just called because…because I met my mother again, and she was angry with me. Really needed to hear a friendly voice for a minute."

"Oh my," Toriel replied.

He sighed again. "Yeah," Nigeki said. "I know it's kind of pathetic to ask—"

"You wanted to hear… **my** voice? Is that reassuring to you, child?" Toriel cut him off suddenly, a slight giggle to her tone making him think she was blushing at the suggestion.

"Well, I…I! Erm, I…," Nigeki stammered, realizing he was blushing furiously himself, flustered by the beautiful teacher being flattered by him.

"Would you like to hear a joke, child?" Toriel asked suddenly.

"…what?"

She cleared her throat. "What do monsters use to stay cool in summer?"

"I don't know…" Nigeki answered, feeling slightly dazed.

"The **scare** conditioner!" Toriel finished with glee. The punchline just hung in the air between their phones for a second, silence reigning. Then Nigeki found himself chuckling faintly at the absurd joke, and after Toriel heard it she started to chuckle back in relief. Nigeki laughed louder, the warmth of Toriel's laugh pouring into him and erasing the sting of his mother's rejection. Toriel laughed louder too, sounding so joyous. So free.

After a minute they both died down, and Nigeki managed to say, "That sounds kind of racist, honestly."

"Oh, child!" Toriel laughed again. "It was just a silly joke! How are you going to make it through life if you can never let go and laugh a little?"

After a second he supposed he had to admit it was true. Here, in his supposed home, he'd spent years hidden away from anything that might've had a negative effect on him. But also kept away from anything that could've had a positive effect, like friends and games. His family had their reasons for it, he understood that. But it was only after they realized his condition was just getting worse confining him to the grounds and sent him off to school in exasperation that he'd made a group of friends and started to really life for the first time.

He had to get back to school. **Soon.**

He had to get back to her.

Then he stopped himself. No. He had to get back to **all of them.**

* * *

The lavender-haired girl was unnervingly stoic as Kai led the way to the house's guest wing. "You know," he ventured, just to try and break the silence, "My father went to visit Nigeki's school a while ago…he heard about how my little brother had lost control again and turned into Tear, but not that he'd gotten married."

"We're just waiting for him to get me a ring," Mizore replied evenly.

Kai looked over his shoulder at her for a long minute and gave her an incredulous look that didn't faze her at all. "You're serious, aren't you?" he finally asked. "You want that from him, knowing what he's really like? What—"

"That's not what he's really like," Mizore interrupted, but her tone didn't change at all.

"Regardless, you've seen he's a monster even to monsters," Kai pressed. "How could you stand to be around him, knowing what he could become if he lost control?"

"Because he won't," Mizore replied as evenly as before. "I won't let him."

"Here we are," Kai replied and opened the door to a bedroom she could've fit three of her room from back at school inside. "Feel free to freshen up, Shirayuki-san," Kai offered. "You will be notified when supper is ready."

Kai left without another word. There were far more serious things on his mind than his little brother finding a gullible, if pretty, girl.

He and his father had been returning from an expedition to a Tear nest when Nigeki had returned…seen the horrible place full of pods where those demonic, formless things were growing even greater and more fearsome. Now that they'd finally found a place where they could capture a specimen or two for study, it was all the more important to move quickly to find a way to stop these things.

Before another innocent woman could be attacked and give birth to a tainted child like Nigeki Hitoribo.

Kai flung open the doors to his own room and then closed them behind him again with a slam. He fell onto the bed and let out a long, hollow sigh. Where did these horrific creatures come from? Why were they so dedicated to bringing absolute ruin to everything and everyone around them? And perhaps most worryingly, how could they be defeated?

"Yeaaaargh!" a voice split the air as suddenly a blazing red bolt fell through the air straight toward him. Kai tensed and grabbed his attacker's shoulders as he felt their slender arms slipping around his torso and long nails raking against his back…

"Admit it, I scared you!" giggled a familiar voice, and Kai fell back into his bed with an irritated sigh. That only got another giggle out of his attacker.

"The last thing I need is scares, Akari," Kai grunted, but the beautiful girl above him only smiled.

"There's good scares and bad scares, Kai," she said, brushing the bright red hair that was the only thing he'd seen when she was pouncing on him out of her porcelain features. "And you're going to have to get used to that idea if you're still dedicated to making some poor innocent girl your bride…"

He reached up and stroked the girl's cheeks, sighing and finally managing a smile. "I'm sorry, my love. You must know we're grateful to all the help the Kuchihige clan is providing, and I don't just mean having the most beautiful vampire in the world among them," he said, and she beamed. "I'm glad to see you even if this is a surprise. I just saw such terrible creatures when I went scouting with father today, and I was reminded of how much they've traumatized mother. It doesn't help that my little brother showed up without announcing himself…"

Akari gave him a puzzled look. "Why should Mills need to announce himself? And where did he go?"

"No, not Mills. My **other** brother. The one who traumatized mother."

"You never told me you had two brothers!" Akari exclaimed.

"I **don't** ," Kai grunted, but Akari got up and headed for the door. "…where are you going?"

"Where do you think? I'm joining this family before too long, I'm going to meet my in-laws," Akari replied.

Kai lurched up. "Wait!" he called, but she didn't. In another second Akari had already opened the doors and walked out.

* * *

The war room his father had built onto the back of the house was full of technicians going over readouts at bright screens or rushing back and forth, sending messages and the latest findings to the few allies they'd managed to gather in finding the secrets of the Tears.

And of course in the middle of it all, talking to an aide who then hurried off, was Takeshi Hitoribo, master of the house. He'd only just gotten home from the field and already he was back at work?

"Shouldn't you be taking a break?" Nigeki asked, and his father actually jerked in surprise and twisted around to face the interloper, fangs bared.

"Oh, Nigeki...I wasn't expecting to see you in here," he collected himself. "Besides, I can't rest now. We're on the verge of a major breakthrough. And seeing you here again has reminded me of how important this project is."

Nigeki bristled lightly. "And what does that mean? So you don't let anyone else end up like me? Part Tear?"

"Don't let Kai get to you," Takeshi said, trying to defuse his son's anger. "He may be rough on you but he's as dedicated to saving everyone from the Tears as we all are."

"It wasn't just Kai. Mom isn't any better, even after I brought back the girls."

Takeshi sighed and nodded, probably having suspected it himself. "This is an ordeal, son. But for the good of the world, we need to see it through to the end. Then we can patch up things between the family.

"Oh, by the way," he went on, "we've been working with a new consultant, and he's got something to share with you."

Nigeki squinted at his father. "Consultant? Where is he?"

"Right here. Silent but deadly," said a voice from right behind him and Nigeki whipped around to see a bald man whose head barely came above Nigeki's waist, standing inches away from him. A broad grin was plastered on his plump face that only seemed to broaden even more when Nigeki literally jumped in surprise and twisted around to face him.

Takeshi walked to his son's side, looking to be smiling lightly within his beard. "Nigeki, this is Doctor Sands. He's provided some extremely advanced insights on energy fields and how they might be able to weaken the Tears. We just need to get our hands on one for study. But he has something special just for you, from Mikogami…I mean, from your Headmaster."

"And what's that?" Nigeki asked, a little guardedly. Something about the little man, whose grin was still pasted to his chubby face, made him uneasy.

Before Sands got the chance to reply, a tired-looking aide walked up to him. "I'm sorry, Doctor, but those findings we went over…where should I drop them off again?"

Sands pointed over to the team at one bank of computers and said, "I told you before. Now, **Gobi** useful over there." He turned to Nigeki. "Come on, kid, we've got a lot to do. Let's get going and get out of your dad's **Sahara**."

"…was that a pun?" Nigeki asked, another huge sweatdrop forming on his head.

"A pun?" Sands asked. "I'm **scirocco'd** you could accuse me of such a thing!" His grin didn't fade as he went on, "That one too intellectual?"

"Go with him, Nigeki. His wit's one thing, but his knowledge is quite another. I'd tell you more, but Mills wants to be the one to explain this to you," Takeshi said, and at the mention of his other brother's name, Nigeki turned and followed after Sands, in spite of the man's horrible puns.

* * *

Sands walked briskly back to the main house and then took the wide staircase that led down to the converted cellar space where Nigeki's other brother kept a workshop. Nigeki usually hadn't been allowed down there in the past, if only to make sure he didn't change to the Tear and destroy some delicate work. It seemed like something pretty major must've been going on for that to change…

"So the Headmaster sent you to meet me, and give me this thing?" Nigeki asked, hoping to pry a little more information about who the strange little man was.

"Sure!" Sands said. "Can't you tell?"

"I just thought he would've let me know, since he sent me out here anyway."

Sands snorted in amusement. "You know those mystical mentors. Couldn't give you a straight answer if they had a gun stuck to their head. How are you supposed to save the world if you know what to expect, right?"

"I guess," Nigeki said, no idea how to reply to that.

The vault door that usually kept the space enclosed was actually sitting open and Sands walked right through. Beyond, the room was almost the size of an airplane hangar, with a large hydraulic lift that went up through a door in the ceiling to take the large machinery Mills usually helped to build up to ground level. There were no traces of machines there now, though. Instead there was only a large white circle that'd been painted out in the middle of the floor with four columns of black stone around it. Veins of silvery ore ran through them, and atop each was a ring of gold.

" **There** you two lazy-asses are!" called a teasing voice, and striding toward them came a tall, smiling man with sandy blond hair.

Mills Hitoribo had inherited a lot of his looks from their English mother, if not, thankfully, her complete disregard for the youngest of her sons. Still, as he always did, Nigeki winced as he saw the small stub of flesh that was all that was left of his one ear after Kai had struck him during a time Mills had come to Nigeki's defense during a family quarrel that had gotten ugly.

"Hi, Mills. Dad says you've got a big secret to show me," Nigeki said and extended his hand. Mills reached out to shake it, then suddenly whipped his hand away and spun around, lightly slapping Nigeki between the shoulders. "You always fall for that! You haven't changed a bit little brother…but from what I hear, you somehow changed completely, too."

"Running away from my problems wasn't working," Nigeki shrugged.

"No, I guess it doesn't," Mills replied.

"No, it really doesn't, does it?" Doctor Sands agreed, looking over his shoulder at the two of them. To Nigeki's surprise the grin on his face had sank into a mild frown as if he was remembering something, but when he saw the two vampires' eyes on him it returned. "Tell him about the thing, Mills. I'm gonna start setting up."

"Right!" Mills smiled and clapped his hands. "Doctor Sands told me about a theory he had, we talked it over and we've found a way to power up the Bloodstone." Nigeki looked at him with confusion, and Mills explained. "It's called a Sacred Gear. It's like a divine artifact that's part of your being. Your soul, even."

Nigeki cringed. "I don't know if I like 'divine'," he said, since a vampire like himself could be totally floored by a cup of water, never mind a religious object in the hands of a true believer.

"Joining Nexus is not dangerous! I looked it over fifty times!" Mills assured his brother. "In fact by itself it has little power. **But** , it **can** make Bloodstone stronger than ever and give you even more control, because it can add other people's power to yours."

"…how?" Nigeki asked, unsure of how to react to that. It felt like there were enough beings who took turns seizing control of his body already.

Mills replied by walking over to one of the columns surrounding the circle and picked up a small round object made of the same black stone. "This is a beacon for the Sacred Gear. If held by someone who's given their heart to you, it will let them join with you into a composite being who possesses the capabilities of both, and at the same time more."

"Joining Nexus, huh?" Nigeki repeated the name, thinking mainly on how it could give him more control over himself when he was using the Bloodstone. "I don't know. I don't like the idea of putting my friends in the line of fire."

Mills frowned at his brother's resistance, but Doctor Sands cut in, "Just because you have it doesn't mean you have to use it, right? You can get it now, then get comfortable with the idea and find people you don't mind partnering with."

He thought on it, and of his recent fights with AGES where they'd had weapons that had almost been able to punch through his blood-forged armor. If the Headmaster planned to keep asking favors in exchange for letting him stay at Youkai Academy, an advantage might be nice. After he could find someone he didn't mind taking with him into a fight. "All right, what do I need to do?"

Mills clapped him on the back. "Just stand in the circle and try to act brave."

* * *

Nigeki walked to the center of the circle clad in just a pair of shorts, which Doctor Sands said would be for the best since the energies would be concentrated on his chest. As he stepped into the center of the circle he was sure he could feel the temperature drop. He cast probing eyes around the room, sure the three of them weren't alone. The only thing he saw was Doctor Sands whispering something into Mills's ear, something Mills had to bend almost completely over to let him do. Were they in on it with the other person he knew had to be in the room?

After a second Mills came over and started to adjust the ring on one of the columns. "You doing all right, little brother?" he asked. "Is it true you're already planning to get married?"

" **No** , it's **not** true," Nigeki replied. "Did Kai say that?"

Mills smirked and released the ring as it started to grind. "No, dad did. He said he doesn't believe her, but you must be doing well at school to have a girl that pretty say something like that about." Immediately the room became even cooler, but Mills didn't seem to notice. "I'm really going to have to meet this girl of yours."

"I'm not getting married, Mills. Can we talk about something else?"

"Sure, little brother, sure," Mills replied and went to fiddle with another of the columns. Have you checked in on Frightbook in a while? Cousin Laura got worried when you stopped responding to her updates. She heard about an explosion someplace called Witch's Knoll. Wondered if you knew anything about it?"

"That was me," Nigeki admitted.

Mills laughed. "Look at you! When Laura came to stay with us you'd never even been off the grounds. Now you're blowing things up and freaking her out even though she lives on the other side of the ocean!"

"She'd never think of me as 'the nice one' now, huh?" Nigeki asked, a hint of a smirk forming on his mouth.

" **I** was 'the nice one,' " Mills corrected him with a smirk of his own. " **You** were 'the sad one'."

Nigeki laughed. "And Kai was 'the constipated one'!"

His brother laughed too, but retorted, "Heh, maybe you are 'the nice one'." Nigeki gave him a look of confusion, but Mills added, "That's way too nice to describe Kai!" The brothers dissolved into laughter again.

After a minute they quieted down and Nigeki sighed. "Yeah, I guess being away has changed me a little."

"You must have some pretty impressed people back at school, little brother," Mills replied.

Nigeki shook his head and opened his phone to reveal a picture of a curvaceous woman in a dark purple dress, smiling happily as her fluffy white hair fell down all around her face. Mills whistled. "Who's **that**?"

"Her name's Toriel," Nigeki explained, his voice a little distant and dreamy, which made Mills snort faintly in amusement. Nigeki didn't seem to hear it, though. "Look, I have really awesome people back at school, but she just…when I was in trouble, more than once even, she just came right after me to help get me out. Plus she's….I don't know…she's…" His cheeks started to turn red.

Mills whistled. "Somebody's crushing on teacher. And I don't blame him."

"It's not like that!" Nigeki insisted.

"Saying that just makes it sound even more like it **is** , little brother," Mills replied.

Nigeki sighed, but kept looking at Toriel's picture. "It's not."

"Sure it isn't," Mills replied.

They stopped as a cold prickle ran up both their necks, and they realized Sands was standing behind them.

"She's a pretty awesome lady, huh?" he asked.

Nigeki arched an eyebrow at the short scientist. "You saying you met her?"

"Who, me?" Doctor Sands answered, but then produced a pouch seemingly out of nowhere and opened the drawstring, revealing a small crystal globe. Inside was a small green net-like object made of crisscrossing strands, small blips of light whizzing up, down and around the network of pathways. As he opened his hands it floated into the air dead center between the four columns. It looked like it might've been about to float through the ceiling before suddenly a beam of light shot out of each column and caught the sphere.

"Now just hold still, little brother. This won't hurt. Or at least that's what **he** says," Mills said, a mixture of teasing and reassurance. Sands's grin seemed to turn up at the edges a little as he fiddled with a metal rod with a series of gears on it. The light surrounding the Joining Nexus pressed down, lowering the sphere containing it toward Nigeki. After a minute it touched his skin and a rush of cold raced across his body, just as another power seemed to anchor his feet to the floor as the Gear pressed against his skin. He stared in a mixture of disbelief and slight horror as it started to disappear through his skin.

Then for a second he suddenly twisted to one side and his Bloodstone belt flashed into view around his waist. His eyes shimmered and his fangs extended. The primal part of his being, the hunter, sensed the new power being integrated into his body. An alien power, one it didn't understand or control. Nigeki tried to step away from the Sphere, but Sands whirled the cogs on his device faster and the rays of energy from the columns pushed it down quicker than before. In another second it had been absorbed completely into Nigeki's body. Green trails spread across his skin looking like circuitry for a moment, then they faded from sight.

Nigeki shook his head to clear a dazed feeling from it. Mills came over and caught him by the shoulders to stead him. "How do you feel, little brother?" he asked quietly.

"I don't feel any different."

"You won't until you actually use the Gear, smart guy," Mills told him.

But as Mills said that, a wave of almost undetectable energy from the infusion of the Sacred Gear went slipping across the grounds of the house, and it sent out a silent call picked up by insidious ears.

* * *

Near the edge of the wall of the estate stood a raised platform, made of stone and inscribed with arcane symbols inlaid in a thick black metal. A smaller platform about five feet across and made from pure white stone rose from the center. It was an elaborate portal that could, with careful magical tuning, send and retrieve people almost anywhere in Makai Realm.

It was how the family had been trying to find places where the Tears gathered in the far reaches of the strange world of monsters. Normally it took a carefully-coordinated team of magical practitioners to adjust and activate it.

The inlaid runes flashed green and lines of power ran from them inward along the platform. A whirlpool of silvery water whipped from the raised center, higher and higher until it was nearly twelve feet tall. It started to take shape as it glided across the ground, seeking its kindred…

* * *

"Something's wrong," Nigeki whispered before he realized what he was saying.

Mills squinted at his brother in confusion. "What's wrong?"

"He means somebody's crashing your party," Doctor Sands replied, and Mills turned around to see he'd somehow gotten to the door to his lab, and already he was halfway through the door.

Mills stared at him. "Where are you going in such a hurry?"

"Away," Sands replied simply, his smile unmoved. "What? You expect me to stick around and fight something for you guys? I **already** saved you."

Mills scowled. "What are you two talking about?"

But Sands was already down the hall and walking up the stairs, hand stuffed into his pockets. Strangely, Mills thought for sure that it looked like the skin on his hands was peeling off…

Meanwhile, Nigeki was staring intently at a piece of machinery Mills had left in a corner of the room. "Come out of there, Mizore. Now," he said. A second later Mizore leaned into view.

"Hi."

"Is that my shirt?" he asked, and reached for the garment on the floor behind her, but Mizore snatched it away.

"No, it's mine now," she said, completely deadpan as usual.

Nigeki couldn't help but laugh quietly at this. "My god…these are the kinds of friends I have."

"Lover-candidate."

"What?" he asked.

"It's higher than a friend."

He didn't get the chance to ask about that. There was a sudden roaring noise like an explosion that sent tiny fountains of dust falling from the ceiling. Something was wrong. Without waiting, Nigeki ran out of his brother's lab and up the stairs.

As he made it up to the main floor the wall exploded inward and peppered the air with hunks of razor-sharp glass and huge pieces of brick and plaster. How had an attacker managed to get so close to the house? And who could possibly be crazy enough to attack the house of a family of vampires?

And when he saw what it was, his blood very nearly froze in his veins. It was a massive figure, nearly ten feet high, but its body and limbs almost impossibly thin and graceful as it danced and dodged around the attacks of two of the estate's defenders, seeming to sense each blow coming with ease. Fitting as its body seemed to be not solid but fluid, made of some kind of silver liquid that it hurt to look at for more than a second or two. It had the shape of a humanoid but two long wings with plumes like icicles dangling down from them, matching its long, needle-like fingers. In what might be called its face there were a pair of glowing eyes, and light blue liquid trickled from them.

Like tears.

It was a Tear.

It was impossible that something so beautiful and elegant could be the evil thing his family was dedicated to hunting down, but at the same time there could be no doubt it was anything else. Even from the house he could hear it monotonously repeating, "All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust…"

He'd never actually seen on before. As it lashed out at the other two again, Nigeki knew he should change and get into the fight, but as he did he saw Oyakata's body entombed in the plant behemoth she'd created as Ruby sobbed helplessly at her feet.

"Hey!" he called out, and the Tear whipped around to face him, its torso twisted grotesquely around itself.

"Please stop," Nigeki said as calmly as he could. "Why are you attacking us? We want to understand you so—"

Suddenly it stretched forward, twirling its upper body over and over until its heads was only a few feet away from him…then the eyes in its smooth face turned a blinding white. "All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust," it said insistently, and reached out to grab him, digging its needle-fingers into his arms and chest, spilling blood onto the grass.

Nigeki cried out in pain. Somehow he'd known it would happen. The part of him that was a Tear had never been anything but trouble. But now, he was full of blood and feeling ready for anything. " **Henshin!** " The Bloodstone flashed into sight around his waist, but unlike all the other times blood didn't flow out from it and form armor around him. Long lines weaving back and forth like microcircuitry ran up his arms and legs to his chest and as they all met around his heart there was a flash of power, of **life**.

Then it cleared and he was clad in red armor, but now a solid color instead of a network of veins across his body. Silver edging had formed on the front of his black boots and gauntlets, the same bright color as the armor now over his chest, with shoulder plating decorated with engraving of an outstretched hand, and a circular hollow above his heart. His skull-like mask was more refined with a smooth mouthplate instead of a row of sharp teeth, and bright yellow lenses over its eyes instead of sunken sockets. Dark lines ran up his arms and legs that seemed to almost twist and writhe slightly if stared at for a few seconds.

Bloodstone broke into a run at unbelievable speed, the feeling of his usual savage strength gone from his arms but his entire body seeming sleeker. In just a second he was on top of the Tear. It was faster than he'd ever gone, and he'd landed ten punches on the Tear's chest before he could blink. The Tear swiped at his head and trailed silver dust in the air that burned lightly against his armor, but Bloodstone vaulted over its and turned to smash his foot down between the Tear's shoulders as he went past.

The Tear's entire upper half snapped forward grotesquely from the force of Bloodstone's kick. For a second it was motionless, like that might've killed it. But then the mark from Bloodstone's attack reformed and the rest of its body slithered back into its original gleaming shape…he hadn't done anything to it at all!

But strangely, it did nothing to him either. The Tear stalked across the yard to the two people who'd been fighting it; the white streak in the hair of one of them meant it could only be Kai, but the other was a slender young woman with a head of long red hair that made her look like a blazing fireball as she and Kai charged the Tear.

The Tear lifted both of its hands and lances of screaming white power flew from its fingers. Kai and the woman weaved around the first and as one both jumped into the air to avoid the explosion of the next wave of blasts that ripped craters in the ground and gaping holes in the side of the house. Both of them came down with a fierce flying kick aimed at the Tear's chest. As they made impact the Tear skidded back to where Bloodstone stood.

He thought of his gauntlet's blade extending to let him join in this attack. Maybe joining in this group attack would finally do something to the Tear…but nothing happened. This new form not only wasn't as strong, it seemed it lost some of his weapons in the process!

Hissing in frustration Bloodstone hastily powered up another attack. " **Heartcracker Punch!** " his belt exclaimed. Glowing with crimson energy his fist slammed into the Tear's waist and pushed forward while the flying kick from the others pushed it back, tearing the Tear in half!

Its silvery remains splattered on the ground, melting in midair. For a second Bloodstone felt a rush of victory.

But to his horror the silver puddles on the ground rose up, flew together and became the monster he and the others had just destroyed! Kai and the woman started to circle it in opposite directions but the Tear suddenly stretched impossibly thin and reached twice its height, its arms extending outward as it spun wildly and rained balls of power down on Kai and the woman. One hit her right between the shoulders and blew her ten feet through the air. Another went off at Kai's feet and sent him flying in her direction, with yet another energy ball hitting Kai in midair and setting his clothes on fire.

Kai landed near the woman as the barrage finally stopped and awkwardly pulled himself to his knees protectively in front of her, his fingers slipping together with hers as she held a hand out to him. But Bloodstone had no time to think about it. The Tear reformed to its original shape again and placed its glistening hands on his shoulders. It stared right in his face, whispering, "All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust…"

Before he knew what he was doing Bloodstone heard himself repeating along with it. "All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust…" The words became louder and louder in his mind.

In the moments he had while he could still think of anything else a horrified thought came over him: the Tear hadn't reacted to his attacks and hadn't paid any attention to him until it wasn't being attacked by anyone else was because it had been looking for **him.** The part of him that was a Tear too. Countless tentacles formed out of the Tear's wings and attached themselves all over his arms and torso and its legs oozed around his. The tentacles started to suck the life out of his body, but there was nothing Bloodstone could do to resist. All he could do was tonelessly repeat, "All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust…" He was going to be absorbed into this thing, it was inevitable. He'd come so far and been given a new power, and he was already doomed.

Suddenly something flew through the air and severed two of the tentacles before lodging in the Tear's side. Still Bloodstone couldn't manage to resist until a storm of projectiles lodged in the Tear's body and two in his left leg, biting through his armor. He screamed out in pain, but the words in his mind faded enough for him to smash his fists into the Tear's chest with all his vampiric strength and make enough room to jump backwards as far as he could away from it. He landed staggering, and as soon as he came to a stop he saw what had hit him and was still lodged in his leg: a pair of ice daggers.

Then from out of nowhere, Mizore was at his side.

"Get out of here," Bloodstone croaked.

"No," she answered, and wrapped her fingers around his wrist. "You're not involving me. I'm involving myself. You helped me without asking…you don't get to tell someone you care about them and then tell them they can't help you if you're in trouble."

"Mizore…," he gasped in pain, but chuckled. "You're right. I'm sorry," he breathed. "All of you gave me your blood when the Tear had me before, but you were the first one. You didn't even stop and think, you just did it…thank you."

Then he saw she had something in her other hand, a small black orb of some kind. "What's that…?" he asked. It started to glow as if in answer to his question. Then the Bloodstone in his belt called out, " **Blizzard Heart!** "

"What?" Bloodstone himself asked. The orb in Mizore's hand glowed and seemed to absorb her body before suddenly rocketing into the circular notch in his new armor.

" **Synch!** "

Bloodstone's body contorted and a wave of power erupted out from him that knocked down everyone within fifty feet, including the Tear and Kai and the woman, and uprooting hedges and concrete yard ornaments.

When the wave finally faded away, the Bloodstone who had been there a moment ago was gone…

* * *

Immediately a sheet of frost blasted across every surface and punched in every window that was too close. Kai fell backward in surprise as he caught a faceful of snow.

Standing in a patch of brown grass was Bloodstone, looking even thinner and leaner than before. The red on his armor had gone completely white, but the writhing black lines on his arms and legs were now covered by rows of short but sharp icicles. Rows of ice-covered spikes also sprouted from the wrist of his right gauntlet, now thick and wide enough to look like a shield with a long spike in the middle, and a row of jagged icicles ran down the scalp of his helmet. The lenses on his mask had gone pale blue and were edged with frost. Finally the outstretched hand emblems on his shoulder armor had been replaced with waving lines suggesting an icy wind, identical to the image on the orb now lodged in his chest armor.

Mentally, the change was even greater. Nigeki was no longer alone in his mind. Now he could feel another presence; it was cool, aloof, but it stood beside him, ready to plunge into whatever challenged them. Not trying to dominate him or usurp control of his for its own goals like the Tear within him or even the primal hunter side of himself that changing into Bloodstone could bring out.

It was Mizore. She seemed to look over at him, the faintest of smiles on her lips, and then back to the Tear, ready to take it on together.

The Tear went motionless for a few seconds and then circled Bloodstone slowly, cautiously. "All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust," it whispered again, but this time Bloodstone didn't respond, instead going into a fighting stance. The Tear suddenly spun around at blinding speed like a miniature tornado, sending spears of energy shooting in every direction.

Kai grabbed the woman he'd been fighting beside by the hand and dragged her through the remains of the wall of the house. Bloodstone stood his ground and held out one hand that glowed blue before the projectiles about to hit him froze in midair and then exploded into a blinding spray of frigid dust.

The Tear thrust its arm into the dust cloud but hit nothing at all. It twisted back and forth trying to spot Bloodstone, just in time to see him come running up and stab his wrist spikes into the silvery monster's side and rake them downward. He dodged out of the way of as the Tear slammed one spindly arm down where he'd been, splintering the ground. Again Bloodstone stabbed the spikes of his gauntlet into the Tear's liquid-like body and raked them across its side. To his surprise neither of the wounds he'd inflicted healed themselves closed this time. Had the Sacred Gear he and Mizore were using now made them more powerful than the Tear was?

He seemed to get his answer when all of a sudden it stretched its upper body around in a circle and smashed its head against his chin and knocked him sprawling. But Bloodstone rolled with the impact, somersaulting backward and ending on his feet. Immediately he gathered his power to see what this new form could really do.

" **Ice Slasher!** " He swung his arm in an arc and a crescent wave of energy ripped through the air and hit the Tear's arm as it started to throw an energy ball. Instead the monster's arm froze completely solid and shattered into a hundred pieces as Bloodstone dashed in with blinding speed and delivered a vicious kick.

An earsplitting shriek of pain came from the Tear who melted into a puddle and burrowed into the ground. A second later it exploded out of the ground at Bloodstone's feet like an angry geyser and tore and slashed at his armor with its long glistening claws. One claw went straight for his heart but Bloodstone raised his larger right gauntlet like a shield and blocked it just in time. He aimed his other hand to one side and a blast of biting cold wind exploded from his palm and sent him flying free of the Tear's grip.

He jumped off the side of a tree, splitting the top off with the force of his push, but had no time to notice the crash as it hit the ground. Bloodstone somersaulted in the air and then opened his stance and threw his arms wide to tackle the Tear. It started to slither out of the way when out of nowhere Kai and the woman dashed up from opposite sides and delivered two perfectly-timed roundhouse kicks to the sides of its head. It burst from the force, but even as the fragments actually drifted through the air back into the Tear's body Bloodstone launched another attack.

" **Freeze Bomber!** " He pumped his arms back and forth with ice hunks the size of basketballs flying from his palms and bombarding the Tear. Its liquid form bent and contorted as the huge ice bullets battered it again and again until it collapsed into a thick silver puddle.

The part of him that was Nigeki hesitated. Through his veins flowed the blood of one of the deadliest predators in the humans' world or his. But could he fight to the end if that was what it took? And was that what it took?

It did, didn't it? This thing had snuck into his home, attacked without mercy trying to get to him, and when it failed to absorb him it had tried to destroy him, and it had shrugged off everything a pair of vampires had thrown at it. The Tear had to be stopped before it could do any more damage, and Bloodstone was the only one who could do it. The part of Bloodstone that was Mizore was silent, only giving off a cold loathing at this abomination that had tried to take away something…

As Bloodstone landed he turned around to see the Tear morphing into another new shape. Within seconds it had reshaped itself into a long cone, looking like a cannon. Inside it a sinister glow started to form, no doubt a devastating attack it meant for the opponent it had failed to control.

Bloodstone concentrated on all their combined power for what came next. The temperature around him plummeted, and out of the corner of one inhumanly sharp eye he saw the leaves on every tree surrounding the house turn brown and fall off. A pale blue glow formed at the tip of the spike on his bulkier right gauntlet and traveled down to his clenched fist.

" **Aurora Glacia!** " called the voice of his buckle as he cocked back his arm and then slammed his hands together released the power he'd built up. Two ribbons of ghostly energy, both as tall as Bloodstone, jumped from his knuckles and spiraled through the air like partners in a dance, easily ripping up the ground as they passed. The Tear hummed menacingly and recoiled as it fired its own shot, a ball of energy twice the size of anything it had unleashed before. The two shots collided in midair and pushed back against each other for a second before Bloodstone's beam split through and slammed into the Tear.

Immediately cracks formed all over its body. It quivered and melted away into a puddle before surging up and trying to take on a humanoid form again, but the cracks only stretched higher until they covered every inch of the horror's body. Finally with one terrible screech it shattered into a storm of dust.

Bloodstone thought for a second he spotted a small, wispy shape flying up from the remains but in the next instant it was out of sight.

* * *

In a flash of light Bloodstone reverted with Nigeki and Mizore appearing where he'd been. "That was…I don't even have a word for it," Nigeki panted.

"You don't need a word," Mizore whispered and reached out to slip her hand around the back of his head.

" **THAT WAS AWESOME!** " a voice exclaimed from an upstairs window. Nigeki jumped back in surprise and looked up to see his little sisters looking out the window, Mei grinning and still clutching her precious Wular toys to her chest. Behind them was their mother, but as Nigeki met her eyes she scowled faintly and walked away from the window.

He sighed and wondered if he'd ever change her mind about him. Then Mizore lightly draped her arm over his shoulder, and he started wondering instead about the tiny but knowing smile of hers.

"Hey, you two!" someone else called. It was the woman with red hair as she jogged over to them. "That was incredible, I've never that much power before!... Are you one of Takeshi's consultants?"

"Hi, Akari!" Mei called and waved from the window. "Why don't you marry my other brother instead? He's way better than Kai!"

"That's enough, Mei!" Nigeki called back up.

The woman, Akari, evidently, gave him a surprised look. "Brother? Then you must be the one I just found out about." She bowed lightly and came back up smiling pleasantly at him. "I'm Akari Kuchihige. I'm Kai's fiancée…but I wonder why he never introduced us."

He bowed in return, and stopped to brush a covering of dust off his shoulders. "I'm Nigeki. I'm not surprised he doesn't talk about me. He thinks I'm kind of the dead weight of our family."

"When you can fight like **that**?" Akari asked in disbelief, and Nigeki just shrugged. Akari turned to Mizore next. "And who might you be?"

"Mizore Shirayuki. Nice to meet you too," Mizore said. "Since we're going to be related soon too."

"Mizore…," Nigeki sighed, facepalming.

* * *

Meanwhile, Mills had finally caught up to Doctor Sands, or whoever he really was at the wall at the edge of the estate. The squat man turned around to face him, the same lazy grin on his face as ever. His skin had completely peeled away completely, leaving dull white bone. His clothing had changed to a faded blue hoodie, stained undershirt and frayed black shorts whose pockets his bony hands were stuffed into. Sands seemed completely undisturbed by the fact that Mills had followed him, and now saw him for what he really was.

"Who are you?" Mills demanded. "What did you do you? You made my little brother a magnet for Tears!"

"One-time thing from the Gear joining," Sands replied.

"And why should I believe that?"

Sands chuckled. " 'Cuz it's too much work to make something up."

"What?!" Mills exclaimed, clenching his fists. He wasn't a fighter like Kai, or like Nigeki for that matter, just a scholar. But this man had snuck into their house and done something to his little brother, and he was losing patience with his answers quickly.

Sands shrugged. "Relax, buddy. The boss knows what he's doing. Your little brother's fine, and he'll be glad for what I gave him soon."

Slowly Mills's fists unclenched. Somehow, Mills felt he should believe the skeleton, if only because of that strange but understandable remark about family. Besides, for all the wiseass attitude he was projecting, he had to have been formidable to get inside the Hitoribos' network. And if he'd gotten his skinless hands on an actual Sacred Gear, he had to be powerful. "So what happens now?"

"What happens now? I'll tell you. Look out for your annoying little brother. He may end up being the only thing you have left," Doctor Sands called.

"That's why I gave him the Sacred Gear you got," Mills called back.

Sands laughed, and as he replied his voice seemed to change subtly, becoming…lazier. "that wasn't me. that was somebody with a better attention span, who's **almost** as smart."

Then a man, or something the size and shape of a man, was standing next to him. Mills had simply blinked and there he was, wearing a long black cloak and a white mask with a wide mocking grin. Then as suddenly as he'd appeared, the two of them were gone without a trace.

Mills stood and pondered what Sands had told him for a second, then turned and walked back to the house.

* * *

When he got there Mills jumped in surprise to see the massive holes that had been punched not only in the walls but all over the back lawn. Nigeki and his friend were standing there silently taking beratement from Kai about all the damage their fight had done. Mizore in particular seemed unaffected by Kai's shouts, blushing slightly and fondly cradling the linking amulet Mills had given her in her hands.

Akari stepped forward and put a hand on Kai's shoulder, and he immediately stopped his verbal assault, but still frowned fiercely at his younger brother for a second. She led him away a few feet away with a mild look of disapproval, letting Mills step up and commandeer the conversation.

"Something on your mind, Nigeki?"

"I killed it," the younger vampire replied softly, distantly. "I killed the Tear."

"You were the only thing that worked on it at all," Akari reminded him. "What else could you have done?" Kai scowled, but slipped his arm around her shoulders, and Akari rested her hand over his.

"And why was that?" Nigeki asked.

Mills placed his hands on his younger brother's shoulders and looked him straight in the eye. "Well, here's a guess…the way Sands explained that Sacred Gear to me, it only works if you and the person you're joining with already have a powerful bond." Mizore squealed lightly. "The Tears seem like they embody despair. Maybe a powerful bond is the best thing to resist that."

"I still killed it…I never killed anything before!" Nigeki retorted, even as he thought of the escaped wisp and what that might've been.

Patiently, Mills replied. "What was the alternative, Nigeki? Letting them destroy the world?"

"No…"

"Then maybe you did a good thing."

* * *

 **Sorry if this one was kind of packed, had a lot of the family dynamic to show off. Kai's girlfriend in particular was included so that I could try to give his issues with his brother some color while also showing he's not just a gigantic asshole. I don't believe anybody is, all the time. Hope it gave a good look into what things are like at home for Nigeki, though.**

 **If "Doctor Sands" seemed familiar, well, he WAS who you're probably thinking of. To anybody who might've been hoping his lines would be in their usual font, sorry, but all-lower case is the closest I could come. Special fonts didn't survive the upload either place I post this story.**

 **If he seemed a little less lazy and defeatist then usual, though, I'm trying to go with a more positive mindset and the other characters from that game. That finally escaping captivity has given that group of monsters renewed hope for something better, even if there's still a lot of work to be done before humans are ready to make peace.**

 **Finally, Bloodstone's little upgrade was the result of a couple of ideas coming together, although the biggest one was Steven Universe and its idea of character fusion. Got some plans for that…hope you enjoyed the chapter!**


	17. Chapter 17: More Than a Man

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 17 – More Than A Man**

The second stack of papers was already halfway gone. Moka Akashiya tried to see it as a good sign; last time, not enough students had wanted a paper for them to even finish the first stack. Still, she'd take a low turnout over knowing she hadn't gone to help her best friend when he'd been hauled in by the old Security Committee.

She was still a little surprised that the thought of him didn't get a derogatory snap from her deeper, more violent self anymore. Originally the deeper Moka had nothing but scorn of Nigeki Hitoribo. A vampire, the strongest and proudest of monsters, who tried to hide from his power and run away from conflict. Ever since they'd fought together to bring down the old Security Committee, there hadn't been a word from her deeper self about him.

"Hey! Can I get a paper a boy?" called as he walked up, a barely-concealed lewd grin on his face. Then again, Moka thought, there was probably another reason their latest issue was doing so well. She handed the boy a paper, and he eagerly flicked through it until he found the article he'd been looking for buried in the middle. Or rather, the picture accompanying it.

The photo showed a number of female students, carefully cropped to hide anything explicit so the club wouldn't be shut down, chasing the strange bathtub-turtle creature out of the shower room, a look of absolute panic on his little face.

In the corner one could even the roundhouse punching coming that had made Ginei buy a new zoom lens.

The bathtub-turtle had been spared when the head of campus security intervened and claimed to recognize him. He claimed his name was Woshua, and a bunch of girls glistening with sweat after a pitched soccer game had been a call to action to save them from a scourge of horrific microbes and foot fungus.

The student frowned, obviously not interested in that last part of the story, but folded the newspaper up and took it with him anyway. As he walked around the corner of the main building he suddenly jumped back in surprise from someone coming the other way. It was another boy, thin and dark-haired, but looking out of place in dark pants and an off-white shirt rather than the school's blue and tan.

"NIGEKI!"

Moka threw down the stack of newspaper and dashed over and threw her arms around him. "There you are," Moka said after a minute and broke the hug. "I've been… **we've** been worried sick about you. Why didn't you call and let us know you were all right?"

"I don't have your number," Nigeki answered, a sheepish grin on his face.

"What?"

"I don't have your number," he repeated. "We'd always just talk about our plans in person, remember?"

"Oh…right," she murmured. "But where were you? Why were you gone so long…?"

He shrugged lightly, but Moka looked him right in the eye and folded her hands together, jutting her lip out in a slight pout at him, and he knew he wasn't going to be able to just play it off. "I…well, I was out trying to find my little sisters. The Headmaster found out where they were somehow, and I had to find them and take them home. I couldn't just leave again right away after that, right?"

Moka nodded thoughtfully. "Your family, right…hey Nigeki? What's this?" she asked and held up a small orb of red crystal.

"Uh…why do you ask?" Nigeki replied, although he was already sure he knew the answer. The orb was exactly the size as the one Mizore had been given that let her interact with his new powers.

Giving him a quizzical look, Moka explained herself, "I got this in the mail from Mills Hitoribo. Isn't that your brother's name? The nice one?"

"Yeah, that's my brother," Nigeki replied with a hint of menace in his voice, not so sure if he was "the nice one" anymore for springing something like this on him. Giving a linking amulet to his new Sacred Gear to another of his friends without a word. "He just sent you that?"

Moka nodded. "Uh-huh. Just this. No letter or instructions or anything. I mean, it's pretty…but it's kind of strange to just send it to someone else's friend, isn't it?"

"AH! Hitoribo-san! You're finally back!" He turned as another pink-haired girl called out to him, this one being pushed his way in a wheelchair. Doing the pushing was a smiling dark-haired boy with a black eye. As Nigeki remembered that was Ginei Morioka, the president of the newspaper club that Moka and his other friends belonged to. The president who liked to take pictures of girls without their knowledge, as Nigeki also remembered.

"Hello, Mero-chan," Nigeki smiled gently and nodded. "You look like you're doing well."

As he said that, Meroune grabbed his arm and stroked her dainty fingers along it. "It's good to see you, Hitoribo-san," she cooed. "You were away so long with no word, I was afraid something… **tragic** might have happened to you," she went on, but was there a little glint of excitement in her eye at the word?

Ginei stepped forward, an exaggeratedly shiny smile on his face that wouldn't fool anyone. "I've been looking after Lorelei-sama. A beauty with such a regal bearing shouldn't be left thinking such morbid thoughts."

Meroune giggled. "Isn't he sweet?" Nigeki said nothing, but thought _that's one word for it_. She went on, "He was trying to catch that peeper who came into the girls' shower room the other day when he got hurt, you know."

Nigeki looked over at Moka incredulously, who just shook her head. "Well, I'm glad things are going all right…and wait, your family name is Lorelei? That's really pretty," he replied, hoping he sounded friendly.

He guessed he did, because Meroune smiled, and behind her Ginei glowered. "Thank you, Hitoribo-san! Oh, but that reminds me, I got something in the mail from 'Mills Hitoribo'," she said, and Nigeki didn't have to guess what was about to happen. She reached into a fold of her dress and got out a small orb of watery blue crystal. "Do you know what this is?"

"Maybe I can figure it out after I've been back for a little bit longer. It was kind of intense while I was gone," Nigeki replied to her.

"Oh, that's awful!" Meroune gasped. "You should relax. There will be plenty of time later!" She turned to Ginei for a second. "Thank you for helping me around, and I hope you'll go one protecting us from horrible peepers." She turned back to Nigeki. "Doesn't he have such a gallant smile?" she asked, then wheeled away in the direction of the girls' dorm.

Once she was out of earshot, Nigeki gave Ginei an incredulous look. "Gallant, huh?"

Ginei grimaced. "You saying I'm not good enough for a girl like her?"

"That's for **her** to say," Nigeki replied. Behind him he was sure he heard Moka make a little uncertain-sounding moan.

A tense moment passed with Ginei glaring at Nigeki, who stared back at him but only looked worn down from what he'd been doing while he was off campus. Finally Ginei was the one to break the silence. "Akashiya-san, hand out the rest of those papers," he said, and then turned and stalked off the other way.

Moka gently squeezed her fellow vampire's shoulder. "I was afraid for a second you were going to fight…or something."

"There's too much of that already," Nigeki replied, but he turned around and managed a smile. "Why don't I help you hand those out?"

She brightened at the offer. "Really?"

But Nigeki's smile faded as he spotted something over her shoulder. "Actually, looks like I'm not so free all of a sudden…" Moka turned to see what he was looking at: a slim woman coming their way, prim glasses balanced on her nose and puffy blue hair tied back in a thick ponytail. There was no mistaking Felicia, the faculty advisor of his Drama Club. It had turned out she was actually keeping an eye on him for the Headmaster to decide if he might be a useful agent in exchange for being allowed to stay at the school. Given that, he doubted she was coming to make sure he'd been rehearsing his lines while he was gone.

"Come on, kid. Let's get you debriefed," she said simply, tiredly, sounding resigned to an idea she wasn't fond of.

"But Bast-sensei, I don't wear briefs."

"Oh, so you're a comedian now too, huh?" she said with an incredulous lift of her eyebrow.

But did her mouth turn up just a bit in amusement before she turned back to the school building?

* * *

Felicia released her hand from Nigeki's shoulder and opened the massive double doors leading to the Headmaster's office. She hadn't gone in front of him…apparently she was well aware of the fascination her figure had for boys his age.

The room on the other side was surprisingly dark, lit only by a pair of quartz lamps in the ceiling above the massive carved desk that the hooded figure was sitting at. One on side stood Ruby Toujo, the young witch Nigeki had met on his recent trip off-campus, wearing a black miniskirt and blazer. Nigeki caught himself staring at her long, slender legs, and apparently Ruby caught him too, her cheeks turning a bit pink and looking away from him.

But the most surprising thing he saw was Toriel standing on the other side of the Headmaster's desk, idly reading a book as she'd been waiting for him and Felicia to arrive for their meeting to begin. She was wearing a long dress in her normal regal purple, but had on her reading glasses. Small, half-moon lenses secured around her neck by a thin blue strap with yellow flowers on it, making her look even more calm and refined than usual. As she snapped her book shut and looked up to meet Nigeki's eyes she cracked a small but warm small in his direction.

"Ah, there you are, child," Toriel said gently. "Before we start the meeting, do you think you could tell me what this is?" As she asked she produced a small golden crystal orb.

Mills sent one to **Toriel** too? Did he send one to everyone at the entire school, or just the ones Nigeki knew?

"Time enough for that soon, Mrs. Dreemurr," the Headmaster replied, steepling his fingers and settling his glowing gaze on Nigeki. "I sent you to find Lady Oyakata and ask for her help. Miss Toujo has informed me about how their home was targeted by a group calling itself AGES, and how Oyakata forced you into a situation where you'd have to destroy her to protect that town, but also that Oyakata sent for you in the middle of the attack. We need to know everything she told you."

"It wasn't very much," Nigeki replied. "Mainly just that something really big's coming and somebody was trying to get her help in dealing with it. Some 'doctor' or somebody."

The Headmaster's glowing eyes narrowed slightly inside his hood. "A doctor? Who?"

"No, not him."

"This is no laughing matter, Mr. Hitoribo," the Headmaster said suddenly, harshly. "Something _is_ coming. If a separate party is trying to prepare, and it's hiding from us, and coopting resources we've scouted, the situation could be disastrous."

Felicia scoffed. "Resources. Is 'allies' too hard for you to say, Tenmei?"

He ignored her and kept his attention focused on Nigeki. "Did Oyakata tell you **anything** else at all?"

"Something about 'beware of the man who speaks in hands,' " Nigeki replied with a shrug. "Maybe that's the 'doctor' guy she was talking about. I don't know. She didn't tell me even after I destroyed her book and we got away from AGES."

Ruby cleared her throat and all eyes were on her. "I never met 'the doctor,' sir. I believe the mistress was trying to shield me from him…but that would certainly make sense with him being someone she would warn Hitoribo-san to be careful of."

"Fantastic!" Felicia exclaimed. "Someone even a seasoned witch is afraid of! I told you we never should've gotten kids involved!"

"I agree," Toriel spoke up. "I've seen a child do a miraculous thing, but so many others paid with their lives attempting what he achieved."

"A useful **ally** ," the Headmaster retorted, grinding out the word at Felicia, "is an ally regardless. He may be a child—"

"Excuse me!" Nigeki interrupted, bristling at being called that after everything he'd gone through lately. "Maybe I'm **not** that experienced yet, but I'm a kid **you** guys trusted with a Sacred Gear, aren't I?!"

Silence descended on the Headmaster's office, and Nigeki's bravado very quickly faded as the hooded man stood up, rested his hands on the desk as he leaned over it and in a menacing whisper said, "Please repeat that, Mr. Hitoribo."

"Didn't you?" Nigeki replied, trying to collect himself. "When I was at home I met a Doctor Sands who'd been working with my brother on a way to put one of those into my body and give me new abilities. He told me you had him do it."

The Headmaster's eyes seemed to turn a cold, angry shade of grey. "I don't know of any such 'Doctor Sands,' and I certainly don't have something on the order of Sacred Gear just sitting around. Even if I did…you have the potential to be very helpful, Mr. Hitoribo, but you haven't proven yourself **that** valuable yet."

Toriel put one warm hand on Nigeki's shoulder and the tension he'd been feeling of being under the Headmaster's scrutiny faded. She bent over and looked him in the eye, but as always her look was calm and patient, analyzing but not judging. He felt himself getting lost in those eyes…

From a thousand miles away he heard her say, "I think he's telling the truth."

"Then let's get it out of him!" Felicia cried.

But the Headmaster clapped his hands suddenly and sharply, flooding the room with magical light for a second. " **No** ," he said quietly. "Your concern is admirable, but if it **is** a true Sacred Gear then removing it would certainly kill him. Let me examine it, then I'll have to compare the reading to be sure. But let me put it this way, Hitoribo-san: if you have a true Sacred Gear, whether you want to be or not, this 'Doctor' certainly wants you involved in what's coming…"

* * *

After some magical scanning by the Headmaster, Toriel had walked Nigeki out of the building, lightly questioning him about Doctor Sands and if he was likely to be "the Doctor" that Oyakata had talked about. Somehow he'd doubted it; strange as he'd been, nothing about Sands seemed to indicate "a man who spoke in hands." But when Nigeki mentioned the man's strange puns a thoughtful look came over Toriel. She almost looked embarrassed when Nigeki mentioned Sands seeming to recognize a picture of her…or had it been the strange fact that Nigeki kept a picture of her?

She'd carried the crystal ball Mills had sent her in her hand the whole time she'd been walking him home. He didn't once consider telling her what it was for, but spent the whole time wondering in the back of his mind what combining with her would be like…

Still thinking about combining with Toriel, Nigeki unlocked his door in the dorm, and as he stepped into his tiny room a feeling of calm,of **being home** really settled in.

He threw his futon on the floor with a sigh of relief and sat down at his desk and turned on the tiny lamp he did his homework by, although his good mood soured a little as he thought of how much homework he'd be making up under it soon.

"…Nigeki?"

His predatory instincts took over for a second as he heard the voice, sitting straight up and whipping around to the door. The person standing there jumped in alarm, but he settled down when he saw it was just Moka. "Oh…hi, Moka. I'm sorry, I've had a couple of scary experiences while I was gone."

The next thing he knew she'd rushed into the room and was looking him in the face with an expression of worry. "What? What happened?" she asked, and when he tried to step back she grabbed him by the shoulders and held on with surprising strength.

"I…I went and saved my sisters from some dangerous humans," he started to answer.

"Is it about that explosion at that place? Witch's Knoll?" Moka cut him off suddenly.

"Does **everyone** know about that?"

"Pretty much," Moka said, and looked away a bit sadly. "It got around on the internet. Somebody got pictures of what everyone thinks was you fighting some kind of huge plant. A lot of the kids at school are hoping you died back there."

He cupped her chin and led her around to face him again, a slight smirk on his face. "Too bad Kamen Riders can never die, right?" he asked her.

She studied him for a few seconds before saying, "You're different."

"…oh? What do you mean?"

"Well, um…," Moka said, suddenly unsure and unwilling to look him in the eye. Was there a wry smile on her face? "I don't know…like the day I met you, you tried not to get into a fight with Saizou at all. You seemed like you were trying to avoid getting too involved—"

"I was," Nigeki confirmed.

She nodded lightly. "…and now you're showing up on the internet, and you weren't even bothered when I said I heard people hoped you died and were never coming back."

He opened his mouth to answer, then stopped to think for a second. Finally he answered, "I guess I'm learning what it's like to be allowed to actually do something, instead of just be quiet and stay out of the way so I don't bother anyone. **Somebody** thinks I can make a difference, so I'm gonna take it."

"Somebody? Who?" Moka asked, but looking curious now instead of scared.

" **I** already know all about it," a teasing voice answered for Nigeki. He turned to the window just in time to catch a flash of striped panties as Mizore Shirayuki suddenly slipped off the ledge outside of his window, long lavender hair dancing behind her for a second. She was triumphantly holding up the small orb she'd used to fuse with Nigeki before.

Then Moka got out the orb Mills had sent her too, and the lollipop dropped out of Mizore's mouth. "Oh, so they gave you one too, Shirayuki-san?" asked an oblivious Moka. "Do you know what they're for?"

Nigeki hastily stepped between them as the temperature in the room plummeted and a sheet of ice coated the wall behind Mizore. He'd known what she'd been thinking since they'd joined up to fight the Tear at his family's house. But…he'd hoped to have the chance to find a way to explain it without provoking anyone.

Being upfront was the only thing he could think of to. "When I was gone, I got a power called a Sacred Gear…it lets me combine into one monster with someone who has one of those. Our powers are combined too," Nigeki explained.

"Oh!" Moka said in surprise and covered her mouth with her free hand. "In one body with you?"

"Yes," Mizore answered for him, giving Nigeki a colder glare than he'd ever seen from her. "It was amazing. Our **powerful bond** let us beat one of those Tear monsters he talks about."

Nigeki's eyes lowered and his expression darkened. "I know what you were hoping it meant when we did that, but I've told you, I've told **everyone** , I'm not dating yet. I've barely been out of the house for the first time."

"So what did it mean then?" Mizore whispered.

Nigeki tried to consider his words carefully as the temperature sank even lower, and he considered telling Moka to run. Finally he spoke, "It meant you're an important person to me, Mizore. That was the **second** time you saved me when the Tear part of me almost took me over. But did it mean I'm in love with you? I don't know yet…I want to get to know that person, and fall in a love a little bit at a time. I want to enjoy what that person and I have together, you understand? The last thing I want is to rush in and screw everything up because it seems like a good thing's going on, and just wreck it because I moved too fast."

Moka cleared her throat loudly to try to help defuse the situation, but squeaked in surprise when both of them looked over at her. "It…it…um! It sounds like you really thought it all through," she stammered. Was that a hopeful glance of her own she gave him for a second?

"I had thoughts about what I'd do with my life if I got the chance like anybody else," Nigeki replied. He turned back to Mizore and softly placed his hands over her shoulders. She looked down, clutching her orb with quivering fingers. "Mizore, listen to me. You've been great…I need you to know you haven't just saved my life, you've saved my **soul**. I'm grateful. But I don't know if that means I'm in love."

A few seconds of silence followed and a sheet of frost crawled up over the orb in Mizore's hand. "I see," she finally said. Then ran past Nigeki and Moka and down the hall before they could stop her.

"I'm…sorry about that," Moka said supportively. "Would it help if I got rid of this?" she asked, showing him the orb she'd been sent.

But Nigeki shook his head. "I think that's up to you, Moka," he told his fellow vampire. "I guess that's something you have to decide, if you think you want to join me and help me fight."

She looked him in the eye then, her mouth open slightly in uncertainty. "Um… **do** you have someone…that you really like?" Moka asked.

He smiled slightly teasingly as he answered. "No, not right now. But I have some really good friends. And I hear good friends make the best lovers."

"Oh!" Moka squeaked and blushed.

* * *

The next day was a slog for Nigeki. He'd been off campus for more than a week, and a lot of the things they went over in class were a long way from where he remembered being when he'd left on the Headmaster's little errand. He wasn't looking forward to the amount of homework he'd be doing to catch up…

Even worse was Mizore. She was still showing up in class, thankfully, but whenever he tried to look over at her to see if she was still upset over what he'd said the day before, she avoided even glancing in his direction.

Everyone else was shooting him plenty of glances, nervous or angry ones. He tried to ignore them, focusing instead on the lesson, but out of the corner of one eye he kept . Eventually classes broke for lunch, and Nigeki tried to go over and say something to Mizore before she could disappear, but as soon as he stood up a beautiful girl with a bright blue ponytail grabbed him by the arm and whirled him out of the room and down the hall.

"Finally! I thought I'd never get to show up in a chapter again!" she giggled.

"Kurumu?"

"You DO remember my name! I was starting to worry!" the succubus giggled again, finally stopping once they were at the end of a hall. A few passing students shot Nigeki disgusted looks, muttering things like "wish he **was** dead" and "thought this was supposed to be a **good** school." Kurumu paid no attention to them at all. Instead she got out a small crystal orb, hers a soft pink in color. "It's beautiful," she said with blush creeping into her cheeks, and a knowing smile forming on her mouth. "What…is it, though?"

After going over a dozen responses to the question in his head, Nigeki sighed inwardly and decided to give a straight and honest answer. It seemed like Mills had sent one of those to everyone Nigeki knew anyway, and he **did** owe them for coming to save him from the old Security Committee.

"It's…I think my brother called them 'linking amulets'," Nigeki explained, and Kurumu looked at him curiously. "They're something he showed me while I was gone. I got an add-on to the Bloodstone, and if somebody has one of those and has a 'powerful bond' with me, when I change to Bloodstone we can combine into one monster."

Kurumu's eyes went wide. "Combine into…"

"…one monster," a soft voice finished for her. Suddenly Mizore was standing next to Nigeki, holding up her own orb. "It was amazing," she added, then as a shocked look came over Kurumu's face, she added, "We were unstoppable."

Mizore turned and gave Nigeki a probing look straight into his eyes. But surprisingly her expression was passive, showing none of the anger and betrayal from last night.

But as soon as he'd noticed, he blinked and she was already gone again. Typical for Mizore, but what had she been thinking interrupting like that? And if she wasn't still upset at him for saying their fusion didn't mean they were in love, why had she interrupted?

The air between them was thick with silence for a second. Kurumu broke it as she asked, "You already did it…with her?"

"It's not like…that!"

"Then what is it like?" Kurumu asked, curiosity and apprehension both dancing in her eyes.

"It's like…," Nigeki started to say, but didn't really have anything to compare it to. "I guess it was a lot like just being in one body, but you knew somebody else is there too. They wanted the same thing and they were moving with you, trying to do the same goal as you the whole time."

"Oh…wow," Kurumu said and looked away. Then suddenly she looked him in the face again, smiling faintly. "You maybe doing anything after school today?"

"I don't have my club, but I probably have a ton of homewo—"

"Great! I'll see you then!" Kurumu said, and before he could protest she planted a warm kiss on his cheek and skipped away, smiling.

* * *

The rest of the day dragged on through dry lessons and the contemptuous looks of his classmates. Through it Nigeki found himself curious about what Kurumu had in mind after class was over, and if he should be afraid of the answer.

But he was here to make friends and experience life. He'd barely seen some of them since getting back, though, like Moka and Yukari and Meroune…was this what having a bunch of friends was like to most people? Wondering if you were spending enough time with all of them? He was pretty sure he wasn't…

No sooner had the final class ended than a grinning Kurumu Kurono had grabbed him by the arm again and dragged him out of the school building at a run. "Where are we going?" Nigeki called out as they disappeared down a thin trail between trees. The only reply she gave him was a playful smile over her shoulder until finally pulling him to an empty cliff at the edge of the sparkling red ocean.

"Look, Kurumu, I'm happy to spend more time with you, but what are we doing out here?" Nigeki asked, and finally got an answer.

"Weeeeeeeelllll…," she said, her ears turning red. "…you remember how we kissed before? It was kind of quick, but I was thinking maybe we could…practice?"

"Practice **kissing**?" Was that something kids like them actually did? It sounded an awful lot like a convenient excuse. But…he was supposed to be letting his guard down a little and actually making friends here, he reminded himself.

"It was your first one too, right?" Kurumu pressed on, sounding like there was nothing strange about such an idea. "I know, I wasn't very good…so why don't we get work on getting better?"

Nigeki looked at her uncertainly, and she squirmed for a second but didn't give any other sign of looking unsettled by him. "Kurumu, you're nice, you're really nice. But I told you, I'm not worried about dating anyone yet."

She came over and looped her arms around his neck. "It doesn't have to be dating. It can just be **practice** for dating. There's nothing wrong with that, right…?" she purred, and Nigeki swallowed. She was right next to him, pressing her soft chest right up against him and suddenly giving an upward thrust with her breasts against his skin he didn't think for a second was an accident. But it felt so nice, and he noticed how her hair smelled like flowers…

"Sorry, the kid's practicing with **me** ," someone said suddenly, making Nigeki jerk in surprise. Kurumu squealed in surprise but held on tight as they went down. She landed on top of Nigeki, knocking the wind out of him but never losing her grip around his neck, her breasts smashed against his chest. She wouldn't let go, and it was a minute before Nigeki managed to push himself up enough to see who'd snuck up on them.

It was another beautiful woman with bright blue hair, a familiar pair of glasses balanced on her pert nose and an exasperated look on her face. It was Felicia, his erstwhile mentor, and Nigeki had a feeling she was there to discuss a lot more than the lessons he'd missed while he was finding his sisters.

Behind her was a tall, dark-skinned Brazilian boy; Enrique Sakamoto, the merman who'd gotten involved in Nigeki's fights a few times.

"Come on, boy," Felicia said. "Time for your extra lessons."

"Bast-sensei, it's my first day back," Nigeki protested. "Can't I make that up later?"

"Not that kind of lesson," Felicia replied, and smirked lightly. "Time for some combat training."

* * *

"Combat training?"

"Combat training," Felicia replied, then started unbuttoning her blouse giving a flash of purple lace.

Kurumu gasped in shock and covered Nigeki's eyes with her hand, scowling over at Felicia who just smirked back at her for a second and turning around as she kept undressing. "You better let him see. Otherwise he's just going to get knocked all over the clearing," Felicia called over one shoulder.

"That's your idea of training?" Kurumu demanded. "Getting naked in front of your students!?" She scowled even harder as she could feel Nigeki's face getting hot at the thought of that comment, and a second later a trickle of blood started flowing from his nose.

"I'm not getting my nice clothes all ripped up changing form still in them," Felicia replied and suddenly a furry white tail flicked out from underneath the cascade of blue hair down her back.

White fur sprouted all over her legs and arms, and her long fingers and toes sprouted ruby-red claws. She turned to face them, revealing patches of white fur across her pelvis and strips of matching fur across the front of her breasts, just barely keeping her decent. She leaned back and went into a fighting stance.

"Get ready, kid," she said.

"Do you think you could put some clothes on first, Bast-sensei?" Nigeki asked as he finally pried himself away from Kurumu, only to spot Felicia's bare form and another fountain of blood start to flow from his nose. Suddenly Felicia dropped to all fours and charged across the clearing at blinding speed before she jumped and slammed her foot into his stomach. The air was squeezed violently out of his lungs as Nigeki lifted off the ground and sailed through the air in an arc before crashing into the ground.

"That's lesson number one," she said. " **Never** lose focus on your opponent."

"Are you crazy?!" Kurumu screamed at the catwoman.

"I don't like the idea of anybody your age having to fight," Felicia replied. "But Nigeki accepted a Sacred Gear. He's involved now whether he likes it or not."

"And **I'm** not running away from my problems anymore," Nigeki croaked and gasped out, losing a lot of the impact he'd been hoping to have. He sucked in a breath. "Let's do it, then. **Hen—** "

" **NO** ," Felicia interrupted. "I've seen you fight, kid. You've been getting by on raw power, but that's probably not always going to be enough. If I'm going to help you learn how to fight, then you're going to learn how to do it by yourself. We'll spar. If you change, you lose."

Nigeki sighed. "But that's how I've always fought before. To make sure my vampire nature's strong enough the…the **bad** part of me doesn't try to take me over if I get hurt," he explained, feeling like he shouldn't mention the name of the Tear, as if that might somehow make it stronger.

"That's what you have **friends** for now," Felica replied.

Nigeki shrugged. "So what do I do, then? Teach me, sensei."

"Come at me," Felicia replied.

And he did. Nigeki slowly circled around Felicia, trying to rely on his predator's instincts to sense an opening he could exploit. There was a dry snapping sound in the distance for just a second, like a branch being broken off, and Felicia flicked her head in its direction. Nigeki lunged.

The next thing he knew he was face down in the dirt, and Enrique was chuckling.

* * *

Undyne, new head of campus security, clenched her fist and felt the reassuring heft of one of her spears as it formed between her fingers. She unclenched and it faded away again. _Well, time to go out and keep the peace_ , she thought as she slung on her black leather jacket. At least there wouldn't be any kids to sacrifice for the greater good **here**.

"Do you really have to go out? Nothing's out there."

"Pffft…afraid I'm gonna run into one of those flowery princesses they have up here and have to fight her in a duel for the woman I love?" Undyne smirked. "I'll be fine, Alphy. When did I ever lose a fight before?"

"Are you gonna be out all night?" Alphys asked meekly, hiding her hands behind her back.

But Undyne shook her head. "I just need to walk the grounds and the main buildings…but it would sure go a lot faster if I actually had some other people to do a patrol and report back to me."

Alphys produced a wooden box with a lift-off lid and a yellow ribbon tied around it. "I…I! I made you a bentou in case you got hungry!" she exclaimed.

Undyne snickered. "A what? You mean one of those lunches that the cute girl always makes for the cute boy she has a crush on?"

"Y-you're not a boy!" Alphys stammered, her cheeks and ears turning red at the teasing remark from her partner.

Undyne took the box, then set it aside on the table next to the front door of their room. An abashed look came over Alphys's face before Undyne suddenly picked up the shorter woman and hoisted her into a hug that squeezed the air out of Alphys's lungs. "I know, I'm even better, right?" Undyne asked with a playful grin. Alphys hid her face behind her hands, but nodded. With a chuckle Undyne nudged the hands out of the way with her face and kissed Alphys hard on the mouth.

For a second Alphys just hung there, but then she wrapped her stubby little arms around Undyne's head and pulled her in deeper. They broke it with an actual *POP* that blew back the drapes in their room and looked into each other's eyes, panting.

"I'll be all right, Alphy," Undyne said and tucked the boxed snack into her jacket. "And I'll be home a lot more after I get the chance to whip some discipline into the kids around here. See you soon."

And so Undyne stepped outside.

She had no idea what she was in for.

* * *

Dirt smeared Nigeki's clothes and he was sporting a few new scratches all over his body, but Felicia's lightning-fast swipes and kicks were hitting him less often now, and he jumped back to avoid another sliding kick to the stomach while he spat out a mouthful of dirt.

As the catwoman jumped up and aimed her feet his chin again Nigeki dodged and only caught one on the side of his head, staggering him.

Kurumu and Enrique looked on, the succubus squirming as she watched Nigeki go down again. She kept opening and closing her fingers, resisting the urge to flex them to their full sword-like length and jump into the fight, such as it was.

"You're worried about him?" Enrique asked suddenly. "This is only practice."

"Doesn't mean I have to like it," Kurumu muttered. "What are you doing here, though? You come to watch him get knocked around?" she asked, but after a second wished she hadn't been so harsh.

But he just smiled faintly. "No, I'm here because I need some combat training too. My father was one of the Darkstalkers, you see…he helped Bast-sensei over there save the world a long time ago. Every time I've tried to pitch in to a fight, though, I've only gotten pounded."

"Yeah well, vampires are some of the strongest monsters in the world," Kurumu replied.

"My father defeated one who was supposed to be one of the strongest even among vampires," Enrique replied himself. "If something big is going to happen, I want to be able to do my part."

"Oh yeah?" Kurumu asked. "And does it have something to do with wanting to impress a certain girl in a wheelchair?" she went on with a sly grin. Part of her suddenly said to encourage this fight practice. If Enrique could toughen up and impress Meroune enough that the mermaid girl would shift her attention, then Kurumu could kiss part of the competition goodbye…

Suddenly Nigeki hit the ground again but there was a loud noise like a crash or snap that shouldn't have followed a fall like he'd taken. Felicia turned away from her young opponent, furry ears pricking up trying to gauge where the sound had come from.

"What was that?" Kurumu asked.

"Go back to your rooms and stay there," Felicia said without turning around. "You'll be told in the morning if it's safe to come to class."

"Excuse me!" Nigeki exclaimed, getting up on shaky legs. "I thought we were doing this because I was taking on my problems head-on now."

"We are," Felicia replied. "That doesn't mean you're ready. Get to your rooms. **Now**."

And then she sank to all fours and went dashing out of sight.

* * *

He cursed as the heavy doors creaked open. There shouldn't have been so much noise, but he was still unfamiliar with the new tools that had been created since his last battle with monsters. What was a "bomb," anyway?

But he banished such frivolous thoughts. He was here to recover his family's property and get back out. There were supposed to be some very powerful monsters protecting the secrets of this place, but that had never stopped him before…

He slipped down the stairs and down the hall at the bottom, holding up the strange light the people at AGES had given him as he followed the direction indicated on the device. It was hardly as if he needed it, a familiar prickle racing up the back of his neck as he made his way through the dark halls, coming up to another pair of high doors. In the darkness they glowed faintly with protective magics…nothing he wasn't prepared for, though.

Putting away the detection device he pulled a vial of glistening blue shards from a pouch around his waist and sprinkled it in a semicircle in front of the door. Out came another vial full of yellow shards and he threw them on top of the blue. Then finally he got out a silver tuning fork, and lifted it to hit it against the wall—

"Hold it!"

He turned to face the owner of the voice, a scrawny woman with an eyepatch and a ponytail that was a menacing red in color. It was Undyne, head of campus security. In her hands she was clutching a spear that glowed with blue energy, and he doubted she was unable to use it.

"I don't come here looking for a fight," he said, a warning undertone to his words. "Just let me take what's mine from inside, and I'll leave."

Undyne didn't say anything. She just charged him, weaving back and forth across the room to make herself a harder target. He threw a cross-shaped boomerang that arced through the air at Undyne's head but she knocked it away with a swipe of her spear then threw her weapon at the intruder.

But with an impossible speed he jumped over the spear at it embedded itself into the ground where he'd been. He flipped through the air like a trained acrobat and slammed his feet into her chest, knocking her sprawling. Undyne growled as she got up and summoned another spear, dropping her human disguise and letting dark blue scales form over her body while sharp yellow teeth formed in her mouth, clenched in anger.

He jumped high again and tried to vault over her head but she jumped too and bashed her head into his midriff, knocking the wind out of him. He landed with a crash and let out a ragged gasp as he reached into his belt for another weapon but Undyne stabbed the tip of her spear into his arm. "Hold it right there, pal," she growled warningly. "Who are you, and what are you doing here? What's in there that you want so bad?"

"Simply my family's property," the man answered. "It's a powerful weapon, but you have my word that if I'm allowed to take it and nothing else, I'll leave you in peace."

"Bullshit!" Undyne spat. "If you were so peaceful why would you be breaking in to steal it?!"

"If **you** are so peaceful," he countered, "why are you hiding yourselves here, training monster children to enter human society without being detected?" Then suddenly he whipped a vial at her that shattered against her chest and sprayed a cloud of fluid all over her body. Undyne cried out as it burned against her scales.

The intruder slipped out from under the point of her spear but Undyne gritted her sharp teeth and flung herself at him, summoning another spear and throwing both after him as he got to his feet. He threw another vial at her face and she just turned to catch it on the cheek below her eyepatch. Steam rose from her scales but she just threw spear after spear, forcing him back away from the door he was trying to get into.

"You'll have to do better than that!" Undyne screamed and released a storm of glowing spears that embedded themselves in the floor as they pushed the intruder back, further back, further back. She blocked out the pain of whatever he'd thrown on her that burned away at her scales, focusing only on summoning more spears.

Not all that long ago, she'd hunted another human relentlessly, intending to destroy him and use his soul to ensure her people's freedom. Like everyone else in the underground Undyne had been taught that humans were the enemy, who'd do anything to kill and keep down monsters like her and the ones she was supposed to protect. But that one had been the exception…he didn't harm any of the monsters he met, only wanting to escape the underground and make it back to his home. He'd been the one to free Undyne and all of the other trapped monsters.

That human had taught her, had taught all of them, that not all humans were their enemy. She thought of Frisk and felt she should be going easy on the intruder…he'd said he had no violent intentions for the school. But she knew what was inside there, and that it could never be given to someone who might use it against her kind.

He unfolded another cross boomerang in each hand, thicker and heavier than before, and threw them at her in different directions. Undyne sent one of her spears whirling at the one to her right but the intruder's weapon cut right through it. She ducked as she threw another spear at the other boomerang, the first whistling past her head and burying its tip three inches deep in the wall. As the second one came at her Undyne yelled at the top of her lungs and stabbed the tip of her spear against the center of the spinning weapon and sent it spinning up into the ceiling.

As the intruder readied another weapon suddenly something rolled into his back and knocked him down, but he vaulted off his hands and landed in a crouch. His attacker, a woman with a cloud of bright blue hair atop her head and patches of white fur on her skin, wasn't done with him yet. She pounced on him in a flurry of kicks and punches, flailing giant claws at the ends of all four limbs at him.

But even though Felicia attacked with blinding speed he reacted faster than any human should've been able to, thrusting his elbow against her wrist just in time to knock away the worst of her swipe, twisting his body in time to avoid it as she scraped at his legs with her feet.

Undyne charged into the fray and grabbed the intruder by the shoulders but he suddenly dropped to his knees and somersaulted out from between her and Felicia, leaving Undyne holding his jacket.

"Not bad," the intruder said in what sounded like actual approval. "But that's my property in there. I'm sorry it had to come to this." Suddenly he threw a handful of red dust into air, then snapped his fingers and sent out a spark, and a second later the chamber was engulfed in flame.

* * *

It didn't take a genius to figure out the doors that had been blown off their hinges were where someone had tried to invade. Nigeki sucked in a deep breath and started down the stairs even as a second blast shook the stairs under his feet.

"You don't have to do this," a soft voice called from behind him, and he didn't need to turn around to know it belonged to Kurumu.

"Yes, I do," he replied. "Doing something about my problems is the only thing that's been working."

"Who says this is **your** problem?" she protested. She looked up as Enrique walked past her and then past Nigeki.

He looked back over his shoulder at both of them as the ground shook again. "I think he says that," Enrique replied, his complexion already turning green as he took on his true from. "Just like I'm gonna do." Fins sprouted from his back and as he jogged down the stairs before another blast came. Nigeki was about to follow him but Kurumu grabbed him by the arm.

"Please don't go…I'd go crazy if you got hurt," Kurumu pleaded quietly.

He gently pulled his arm away from hers and patted her on the head. "Thank you, Kurumu, for worrying about me. But just sitting around ignoring my problems was only making them worse. If I do that now it'll probably just be even easier to ignore a problem the next time one happens. I **do** have to do this."

Then he ran down the stairs and through a maze of halls, following the sounds of a scuffle his keen predator's ears picked up. In a minute he could see the dying glow of a fire from a room up ahead, and his stomach clenched at the thought of what that might mean.

The hall opened up into a wider room where a wall of flame had ripped through the middle of it but was quickly dying down. Behind it lay a woman with an eyepatch and covered in blue scales, trying desperately to crawl away from the heat. He saw Felicia jump over what was left of it, ignoring burnt patches on her skin and hair to hurl herself at someone dressed all in black. But she wasn't moving with the lightning speed she'd had when she was knocking Nigeki around earlier, and the man grabbed her wrists as she tried to slash at his face and flipped her over his head.

As he did Enrique lunged out of the shadows and sprayed a cloud of thick purple gas out of his gills into the man's face, but the man held his breath and headbutted Enrique through the cloud, dazing him for the second it took for the man to knock him down with his giant fists pressed together.

And then the man turned to face Nigeki.

His fiery red hair framing a face that was unafraid even in the face of attack by multiple monsters. His tall, wide frame that seemed to automatically denote power even to an apex predator like Nigeki. The steely glint in his grey eyes as he stared Nigeki down, betraying no emotion.

"BELMONT!" Nigeki exclaimed, remembering the name on the screen in the AGES base.

"Ah, it IS you," the man replied quietly. "Your face…I remember seeing just before I was awoken."

"Bel…Belmont?" Enrique sputtered. "A real Belmont?...Here?!"

"Who are you, human?" Felicia demanded.

He closed his eyes before he answered, speaking distantly, like a time long forgotten. "Once…I was known as a fierce hunter of monsters. I was called Simon Belmont. And it seems I have been called back to do so once again.

"And you have my apologies, but I need that weapon and I've spent long enough discussing my past with you," he said and a hand whipped to his belt for another weapon.

" **Henshin!** " Nigeki yelled and the room seemed to explode with crimson light from the force of his transformation. Before it had even cleared Bloodstone was tackling Simon, but the monster hunter amazingly didn't go down, and grabbed Bloodstone by the shoulders as they struggled back and forth across the room.

Suddenly Simon landed a fierce kick on Bloodstone's unarmored midriff and before the surprised vampire could recover, his opponent jumped and landed a spinning kick to the back of his head. "There's no way a human could be so strong!" he exclaimed.

Simon sighed. "Indeed, they say I've become more than I ever was. But apparently this is the weapon of the modern monster hunter," he replied, and held up a golden Rosario that he slammed into a slit on the top of his belt buckle.

As he did it expanded outward into a box-like device engraved with crude images of angels wielding flaming swords flanking the Rosario in the middle. Plates of glistening grey armor appeared and locked onto Simon's body, red edging painting itself along the cuffs of his heavy gauntlets and boots, and along the edges of a visor the color of dark gold above a flat silver mouthplate. A golden flair in the shape of a cross appeared on the forehead of his helmet and matching the emblem of a cross that formed on his chestplate. Mounted on the back of each gauntlet was a thick round pod, each engraved with images of weapons; a sword, a battleaxe, a cross-shaped boomerang like he'd used before, a torch, a bullwhip made of chain links…

"They call it 'Revenant'," he said. "And it seems an appropriate enough name."

"We won't let you get what you want," Enrique snarled and charged Simon, or now Revenant. His powerful webbed hands seized Revenant by the shoulders and hurled him into the air, then caught the armored figure and held him over his head when Revenant came back down. Enrique's clawed fingers sent sparks flying from the armor as he raked them across it, but suddenly Revenant aimed his fists at Enrique and sprayed him down with short jets of water.

Enrique cried out as electric arcs jumped over his body and he fell to his scaled knees. Revenant rolled off him and ran for the huge doors on the other side of the room. "Blessed water…," Enrique gasped. "But that won't keep a merman down for long!"

"You misunderstand me again, child," Revenant said. "I was going easy on you, you are after all merely a child. Fighting is not your business."

"I'll show you what my business is!" Enrique roared and went into a screwdriver kick, his extended feet aimed at Revenant's midsection. The armored intruder just stood his ground and let Enrique collide with him before the pod on his arm dropped a long black rod into his hand.

" **AXE** ," it spoke and the other pod detached from his wrist and flipped open into a pair of gleaming curved blades that attached to the top of the rod and that Revenant used to swat Enrique aside. The merman tumbled through the air and hit the wall with a sickening splat, his fin bent above his head.

Revenant turned and swung his axe at the doors he'd been trying to get into, but as Bloodstone rushed forward to press the attack he was sure he heard, "You have my pity, child." The room shook with a noise like thunder as his axe hit the seam between the doors and bounced off an invisible barrier. He swung again and a web of cracks spread from where he'd hit. Bloodstone lunged for him as Revenant's arm lashed out a third time…

…and Bloodstone grabbed his arm and with an awkward, shaky judo flip heaved Revenant over his head. Revenant landed on his back with a crash but rolled to his feet. Bloodstone went into a stance, but realized he still had no idea what abilities he had now. If he even had any without being combined now!

Revenant hurled his axe and Bloodstone instinctively ducked to avoid it, but a second too late, he realized he wasn't the target.

The axe slammed into the doors, and the barrier in front of them shattered with a deafening crash of glass.

* * *

Kurumu froze at the at the entrance as she thought about if she should keep going closer to the fight. If she **could** keep going closer to the fight. She'd hardly done anything when they'd gone to save Nigeki from the Security Committee. And now, it was someone Felicia was afraid of letting them anywhere near.

Her stomach clenched at the thought of anything happening to Nigeki…but then she thought of how far his powers reached, and how she'd probably only get in his way. But if she didn't, who would hate her more, Nigeki or herself?

Then a sound like a thousand windows exploding out at once ripped across the room and Kurumu screamed, her wings and tail extending out in fright. She peeked around the corner and saw Revenant throw open the giant doors and run over to a pedestal with something in a white glass box on top of it.

" **PURIFY** ," his belt called out and a watery blast came from both of his wrists, washing over the box which sparked a few times then collapsed like paper under the assault of holy water. Inside was a long coil of something dark with a glistening iron handle.

"A whip…"

Felicia came flying at him like a blue-and-white yowling missile, battering his arms and shoulders with her claws and then hooking her long, supple legs around his waist so he couldn't knock her away as she kept up her assault. Bloodstone ran up and launched a jump kick that knocked Revenant rolling away from the whip.

But Revenant rebounded with a feline agility rivalling Felicia's own and slammed his giant armored first into Bloodstone's midriff where his own protection was the weakest. The vampire gasped in pain and went down. The light from the jewel in his belt seemed to flicker.

Kurumu held out the orb she'd been sent, the one that was supposed to allow her to combine with Bloodstone into a single, greater monster. But as she thought about using it, the color seemed to drain from it through the bottom, turning completely clear.

Felicia and Bloodstone got up and rained blows on Revenant as he walked through their assault back toward the whip again, the tiny cuts and dents from their blows actually seeming to heal themselves in front of Kurumu's terrified eyes. Revenant swatted Felicia away with a swipe from one fist and then brought his elbow down on Bloodstone between the shoulders, flooring him.

Suddenly a glowing spear came rocketing out of nowhere and slammed into Revenant's back and knocking him to the ground with a cry of surprise. Undyne had gotten back to her feet, and ten more spears like that were hovering over her head.

"NO!" Felicia screamed and grabbed her. "You'll hit the kid too!"

Undyne grunted in anger and shoved her away. "No I won't! I know what I'm doing!" she yelled and loosed the spears, but Felicia grabbed her again and they went flying chaotically around the room. Enrique ducked as three spun through the air and nearly impaled him, two more skimmed Revenant's armored shoulders and stopped him in his tracks for a second. Another went plunging for Bloodstone's throat and Kurumu gasped in horror, clutching her orb and focusing on nothing but the thought of combining, of gifting him her power to survive that certain death attack…!

" **Blizzard Heart! Synch!** "

The young succubus opened her eyes, wondering if she'd done it, but she was still there by the entrance. And Bloodstone's armor had turned white, with a cone of frost spewing from his fingers and freezing Undyne's spear into broken shards. Then he lashed out with his icy fist and smashed a punch into Revenant's chest that knocked the surprised intruder back a step.

" **Freeze Bomber!** " Bloodstone's belt exclaimed as swung his warm at Revenant and peppered the air with giant hunks of ice. Revenant was already running, dodging the worst of the frozen shots but staggering badly as one caught him between the shoulders. He staggered, limped for a second but took a long jump and landed next to the whip. The last of Bloodstone's ice bullets shattered against the wall next to him as he touched it, and it glowed and faded into the pod on one wrist.

"Put that back now," Bloodstone commanded in a voice with a slight reverberation.

"Never, monster," Revenant replied. "This is **my** family's property, as I said. You have my word I will not use it on you."

"That's not good enough," Bloodstone countered. "What about other monsters?"

"What **about** other monsters?" Revenant immediately retorted. "Don't pretend none of them have ever been a threat to mankind."

"One last chance," Bloodstone warned.

"Consider it ignored," Revenant replied.

" **Fenrir Fanger!** " Bloodstone jammed his fist forward, glowing with icy power. A spear of white ripped from his knuckles at Revenant, who swung his own arm through the air. A length of whip whistled through the air, extending out from the pod on his wrist and smashing right through Bloodstone's attack. It snapped back into its housing but Revenant swung again and it snaked out to strike Bloodstone on the shoulder.

The vampire howled with pain as the armor splintered, with crackles of dark power running across his flesh. Bloodstone sank to his knees, seeming for a second to blur and almost split into two people. But then he snarled in rage and solidified again. He rose to his feet, already glowing with the power of his next attack.

But Revenant had another Rosario in his hand, one made of pure silver. He pressed a button in the center and the Rosario whirled into the air behind him where it formed a shining gate in the air in the shape of a cross. "Not today, vampire," he said. "But if you attack me again, then we shall have to see…" Then he jumped through the gate which closed behind him with a sound like thunder.

* * *

With their enemy gone, Bloodstone released his transformation and unfused back into Nigeki and Mizore, who wore a slight smile on her face.

"I…thought you were mad," Nigeki said hesitatingly.

"I was," she said and rolled her orb in her fingers for a second before putting it away. "I thought this meant we were in love…but even if it doesn't, I know it means I have a head start."

He had to nod at that. "Well, yeah. You've done some pretty amazing things for me, Mizore."

"Not as amazing as **I'm** gonna do," someone declared, and they both looked up to see Kurumu standing there, a gaze of cold fury focused on an unaffected Mizore.

"How about you **all** explain what the hell you're doing down here," interrupted a sharp female voice as Felicia appeared, seeming to have doubled in height in her anger. "I told you to go back to your rooms where it was safe!"

Nigeki quivered, but swallowed hard and managed to say, "I…I! I told you, Bast-sensei, I can't run away from my problems anymore. They just get bigger the longer I take to deal with them."

With a sigh Felicia turned away. "You might be right about that, I guess. Doesn't mean I have to like it when kids decide to fight, though."

"It's our future even more than it is yours," Mizore said suddenly. Felicia whipped around and stared at her for a second, then laughed.

Someone stomped the ground next to them for their attention and they looked over to see Undyne fixing them with her single yellow eye, armed folded in front of her chest. "You know, this is all touching and crap like that, but that guy got the magic sealed weapon he was after. And he got it and got away, because all of you guys showed up out of nowhere and we started tripping all over ourselves." She sighed in irritation and turned away. "I can see just how bad I need a need to start training a new crew."

* * *

Eventually Nigeki managed to peel away from the others and get back to the dorms, flopping onto his futon in the middle of the room. A million things were on his mind, that Simon Belmont was back, and had stolen his family's enchanted whip from under the school.

But after his meeting with the Headmaster earlier, he decided that kind of thing was being looked after at a level far above him. Instead, he got out his phone and dialed down his contact list.

"Hello?"

"Mills, what in the hell did you think you were sending every single person I know one of those jewels that let them combine with me?" Nigeki demanded the second his brother answered.

His reply was a soft laugh. "I was giving them a choice you wouldn't have, little brother. You want to keep your friends from getting hurt, I'm sure, but some big shit's coming. People have to get **involved** , and the sooner the better."

"I'm getting involved," Nigeki replied cooll.

"It ain't your only surprise, little brother," Mills said teasingly. "We had something dropped off behind your dorm too. Go check it out."

"But I just got up here. And you wouldn't believe the night I've had…"

"I bet I would," Mills countered. "Go check it out. I need to go talk to dad…you can thank us later." Then he hung up.

For a few minutes Nigeki tried to decide if he was too tired to go look into his brother's claim or not. But when he tried to close his eyes and not deal with anything until the morning an itch to know what else Mills had been up to seemed to scratch at the back of his mind.

A little while later Nigeki walked out to the small clearing behind the boys' dorm. In the fading light he almost failed to see it for a second, the darkness of its color seeming to drink in all the light around it.

It was a low, powerful-looking racing bike, covered in light armor plating that made it look like nothing but a shadow until he spent a bit studying the shape.

Everything about it gleamed like new, and when Nigeki ran his finger over the finish he was amazed to see his skin left no smudge on it. In a compartment behind the ridged leather seat Nigeki found a message: "This is even faster than it looks…should help you get wherever your new boss needs you to go. We guarantee it'll survive you learning how to ride it, too. Enjoy, little brother!"

And down at the bottom of the note was a word he assumed was the bike's name: CROSSBOW.

Well, it seemed official now.

He was a real Kamen Rider.

* * *

 **Well, that was WAY too long in the making. Here it is, and hopefully it's worth the wait…kinda long, but I believe in giving characters their space to exist.**

 **Sadly I'm going to have to put Bloodstone away for a little while now…the idea I had for the next big plot even doesn't really seem feasible now. Well, still feasible, but needing to be more prominent than I figured it before, and that means finding something better to fill the space. While I'm working on that I think it's about time to start on the Tarock "movie" I've had in mind for a while.**

 **Thanks to DiscontentCat for helping me brainstorm the new character's Rider name, even if I ended up using one of my own.**


	18. Chapter 18: Find Your Place

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 18 – Find Your Place**

The characters and numbers started to swim in front of Nigeki's eyes. He reached up and tried to knuckle the feeling away, but as he did another loud thump from the room next door and this time the impression of someone's face actually appeared against his wall. Even through his earplugs he could hear the boys next door acting out the wrestling match thundering out of the speakers hooked up to their TV. Idly he wondered if having his own TV at school would be nice, but he wasn't supposed to be showing off his status or drawing attention to himself at school…

That was part of the reason why he'd been studying in his room, though. Or trying to. He wasn't the most popular kid on campus after he'd been exposed as a "Kamen Rider," the scourge of monsters. When he'd tried to catch up on his pile of make-up schoolwork somewhere communal he'd been shoved out of his seat by a smirking brown-haired boy with a lip stud…

* * *

Saizou Komiya. They'd met once, although thanks to the Headmaster, Saizou had forgotten most of the details aside from being scared out of his mind. Now, there was nothing Nigeki could do to deny his nature.

"Whatcha studying for there, **Rider**?" Saizou had jeered. "Traitor entrance exams?"

"I didn't fight anyone who didn't have it coming," Nigeki mumbled, trying to remember the justification his brother Mills had helped him arrive at when he'd had to kill a powerful and relentless opponent. Saizou wasn't much of the first thing, but he was starting to become the second.

"Oh yeah, we all believe that from a monster-killer!" Saizou sneered and shoved Nigeki again. Nigeki got up only for Saizou to shove him again a few steps back.

It seemed idiotic. Nigeki **had** fought other monsters from around campus, and some of them would've swatted Saizou like a fly. But that seemed to be it: Nigeki couldn't, **wouldn't** do that now. The vampire had a hell of a reputation to live down, and Saizou was rubbing his face in it.

"Um! Cut it out," someone said. Saizou looked over his shoulder at short, slightly pudgy woman with glasses and swooped-back blonde hair. It was Alphys, their Human Studies teacher. She flinched as Saizou narrowed his eyes at her, but with a quivering hand reached into her purse and pulled out a small purple and black action figure that Nigeki remembered her showing off in class once.

"Cut it out or what, teach?" Saizou asked, a menacing undertone creeping into his voice. He was a bully, but even he wasn't crazy enough to try and start something with a teacher. Not even a teacher like Alphys…was he?

"Cut it out or…or I'll ask my girlfriend to make you," Alphys said, but she couldn't work any malice into it.

"Ha!" Saizou jeered.

Suddenly a loud metal ringing cut the air suddenly. A woman wearing an eyepatch and carrying a long spear that she'd smacked against a wall to get their attention was standing there. "Do we have a problem here?" asked Undyne, head of campus security.

"Yeah, we got a problem!" Saizou scoffed. "You guys are letting a Kamen Rider on campus! It's your job to keep them out, isn't it?!"

Undyne let the spear fade away. "Kid," she said simply, "get out of here before you embarrass yourself."

"Well, nice to know the person keeping the school safe obviously knows what she's doing!" Saizou retorted.

But she was completely stoic. " **Now** , Komiya." His mouth fell open. "That's right, I know who you are. And I hear the stupid jokes kids like you make about me because of this." She pointed to her eyepatch. "But I promise you, I see **everything**. Now I'm gonna tell you again, get out of here before she **does** ask me to make you cut it out."

Saizou scowled but gave Nigeki one last shove and walked away, casting an angry glare over one shoulder as he did. Undyne smiled and waved as he left, flashing a smile of yellow needle-like teeth. Once he was gone she turned to face Alphys and Nigeki. "You two okay?"

"I'm okay!" Alphys almost shrieked. Undyne gave her an uncertain look and Alphys's cheeks turned pink at her outburst. "I mean…I'm fine. Besides, I have Mettaton-Chibi here to protect me."

"I've thrown down with nastier things than a punk like him," Nigeki sighed, brushing himself off.

Undyne nodded. "That's what I hear. But that's not what I asked. I asked if you were okay."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Buried in homework, but I'm fine," Nigeki answered.

"Hmmm…hey Alphy, sounds like someone needs a tutor," Undyne suggested with a grin, running her fingers through Alphys's hair, which only made Alphys squeak in embarrassment and cover her face in her hands. "She'd love to," Undyne smirked.

"Mmm-Mmmm!" Alphys grunted in dissent.

Nigeki gathered up his books and started away. "I appreciate it, but I really just need some privacy to catch up on all this homework," he said.

"Think about it, kid. Maybe she's kind of shy, but she's **really** smart," Undyne called after him.

"I've got a lot of things to think about already," Nigeki mumbled.

* * *

He sighed as the walls shook again. The pile of work he had to make up hadn't shrunk at all, but if Nigeki tried to go out and study again he had a feeling he'd run into someone else with a bone to pick with him. Saizou and the other bullies he'd beat down weren't the only ones out there. But if he wanted to stay at Youkai Academy, and keep in touch with the friends he'd made while he was here, then he was going to have to keep on top of his studies. And that wasn't an easy thing to do with a bunch of noisy neighbors.

With a sigh of resignation Nigeki gathered up his materials and walked out the front of his dorm. He walked over to the campus library, predator instincts primed in case more of his non-fans noticed him and tried to start something.

Suddenly he felt a weird tingle in the air that all of his senses told him didn't belong in this world. Then there was a loud *POP* and a huge wreath of flowers, so big it completely surrounded Nigeki as it felt to the ground around him, appeared out of thin air. From a pair of tree branches unfurled two giant scrolls: WELCOME HOME NIGEKI!

From behind the corner of the girls' dorm stepped a girl entirely too young to be at that school, wearing a witch's pointed hat and a blinding smile on her young face. "HI!" she exclaimed.

And in spite of everything he'd been going through, putting up with noisy neighbors and punks like Saizou Komiya, knowing AGES had a Kamen Rider of their own, his drama with his family…Nigeki found himself laughing. "Hello, Yukari. Thanks for the warm welcome back," he said to the young witch.

Immediately his arms were pinned to his sides as she glomped him, bopping him upside the head with her wand and spilling his books and papers all over the sidewalk as she did. "I knew you'd like it!" she gushed, eyes squeezed shut in joy at seeing him again. It had been such a long time since they'd really talked, hadn't it?

Then Moka Akashiya, his fellow vampire, stepped into view, smiling faintly. But as she tried without success to pry Yukari's arms off him, her smile was a bit worried. "Yukari, I think you can let go now. I think we caught him right in the middle of something…"

Yukari looked up at Nigeki, but didn't loosen her grip. "Huh? We did? What?...OH! You have so much homework!" the witch declared, looking at the field of paper, schoolbooks and notebooks around Nigeki's feet.

"You know, I was really expecting the opposite of this," Nigeki observed.

"The opposite? What do you mean?" Moka asked.

"I mean the last time I tried to study outside my room, that guy who started shit with you on the first day tried to attack me," Nigeki replied. Yukari finally let go and he bent down to start picking up his study materials, but she snatched them away from him and started piling the papers up in her own arms, flicking through them and rearranging them at lightning speed. It took him a second to realize she was organizing them.

As soon as he'd realized that she'd picked up every single scrap of his catchup homework and held it in the crook of one elbow, and grabbed him by the wrist and started leading him away. "Let's go!" the witch beamed.

Nigeki took an awkward step after her. "Um, where?" he asked.

"Studying, of course!" Yukari grinned. "We'll get this knocked out in no time! Then maybe we can study something like…kissing?" she looked over her shoulder at him, her face pink at her own suggestion.

"What? Yukari! Slow down…" Nigeki almost pleaded.

She didn't.

* * *

A little while later they'd found a table to themselves in the back of the school library. A few other students shot annoyed looks their way, especially when they saw him with a pair of cute girls, but none of them did anything else.

"How does it look?" Yukari asked, a bright expectant smile on her face as she shoved a sheet of paper into Nigeki's.

"It looks great, I think?" he replied as he took it, and noticed it was a less plan. "You looked through all that and made this whole thing just now?"

"Guess she didn't skip four grades for nothing," Moka observed. "Maybe it's good for her. She's been finishing all her homework so fast she's had a lot of free time. She's gotten hooked on some anime she got from one of the teachers…Mew Mew Kiss or something."

Nigeki laughed a little at Moka's update, and she smiled a little sheepishly. "Sounds like a real winner," Nigeki replied. "Wasn't that the show that used to air in Magical Detective Loveline's slot?"

Moka knitted her brow. "You watch that show?"

"With my little sisters sometimes, yes."

Suddenly she slid one dainty hand over Nigeki's. "I'm…really glad you're back," she said, taking a minute to find the right words. "I was… **we** were all worried when you were gone for so long. Is everything okay?"

He looked her in the eye, and managed a gentle smile. "I think I'm kind of getting used to it. Yeah, there's some danger sometimes, but it's a hell of a lot better than just sitting around and hoping the problems go away."

Moka nodded, and Nigeki blinked in confusion as she looked away, cheeks and ears turning pink. "I think I know how you feel," she whispered. "I almost wish I got to go with you."

He put his other hand on top of Moka's, not noticing the cheeky grin forming on Yukari's face as she watched. "Well, getting to go to a school with other kids is kind of like an adventure too, right? I don't know. It's kind of nice having a good outlet for my power, but it's nice to have someplace with people who are looking forward to you coming back."

Moka nodded and smiled, leaning in. "I know **exactly** how you feel there…but shouldn't we get your make-up work done?"

A trickle of drool ran down Yukari's chin as she watched them talk. Finally they were back together, and finally they were moving their relationship along again. It was only a matter of time before the three of them were all one loving union…

"Yeah, I guess so," Nigeki said, sounding a little disappointed. He picked up one sheaf of papers and opened it up. He looked over at Moka again with an encouraging smile, but as she met it with another smile suddenly the red "eye" in the middle of her Rosario erupted with a bright glow. Moka gasped and her breathing turned strained as if she was being choked for a second.

"MOKA!" Nigeki yelled and put an arm around her shoulders supportively, not even noticing how every eye in the room was suddenly on them. "What's wrong? Yukari, can you tell?!"

But Moka tapped him on the shoulder with her palm. "No, it's all right. She wants to talk to you. The other me…I mean, the other Moka."

* * *

The tip of Yukari's wand gave off a soft glow from the heart-shaped tip, while Nigeki's own predatory senses shifted to compensate for the darkness out behind the library. Moka stood a few feet away from them, hands cupped around her Rosario, waiting for Nigeki to make the next move.

But Yukari tapped him on the shoulder with her wand. "I don't know if you should do this," she whispered warningly. "Monster Moka's really strong and scary…she might break you in half!"

"I don't think she will," Nigeki answered, remembering the odd look she gave him when they fought Kuyou and right before she sealed herself again, like she'd been rethinking her opinion of him. At least, that's what he'd thought at the time. Hoped for, maybe.

Yukari jumped in front of him, throwing her arms wide. "But what if she **does**? I'll never know true love! I'll never become a real woman! I'll never—"

The vampire put his hands on her shoulders. "Yukari, what are you talking about?"

She threw her arms around his waist. "I love you!" she exclaimed.

"Yukari…no," Nigeki said and stepped away. He sank to his knees to look her in the eyes and put his hands reassuringly on her shoulders. "It's just way too soon."

"You mean because I'm little?!" the witch protested indignantly.

"I mean because it's too soon. It's just way too soon," Nigeki replied gently. "I'm flattered, but you hardly know me yet. Let's hang out a little more first, okay?"

Yukari stuck her lip out in a furious pout, but her face softened after a second as she realized what that meant: more time hanging out with him. "Okay, okay, I guess…but be careful with her, please? Or I'll never forgive you!"

Nigeki chuckled. "I promise. But I don't think I'll be in much position to worry about that if she kicks my head off." Then he stood up and walked over to where Moka was standing.

She turned to face him, pink hair swirling in the air for a second. "I'm ready," she whispered.

"Are you sure?" Nigeki whispered back. "It looks like it hurts whenever the Rosario unlocks…"

"It's okay!" Moka assured him, trying to force a smile. "It's more surprising than painful!" Nigeki looked at her uncertainly for another second, then reached out and grasped the Rosario. Immediately a rush of power shot through both of them with the Bloodstone flashing into sight around Nigeki's waist for just a second before they were thrown apart.

The Rosario seemed ominously cold in his hand as he looked up and saw Moka standing over him. The **real** Moka Akashiya, he supposed, the powerful and ruthless vampire, ice-white hair blowing in a sudden wind. Nigeki rose to his feet. "I'm here," he said simply. "You wanted to talk?"

She fixed him with both ruby-red eyes, seeming to cut through him like laser beams. "Maybe," she replied. "If you can keep up." And with that she became a white blur leaping out of sight through the treetops. Nigeki looked back at Yukari, who gave him a nervous nod, before he went speeding into the treetops after her.

* * *

Nigeki stopped a minute later on a branch halfway up a tree. He pressed himself against the trunk as he looked around to try and spot any trace of Moka. He wasn't really sure what to make of her proud inner self, or of what she could possibly want to talk about all of a sudden.

It was his ears that picked her up first, a faint rustling in the trees off to his right before she suddenly came flying through the air at him like a giant white spear, slamming her knee into his chest and sending him spinning off the branch he was on. His predator instincts kicked in and he reached out to snatch a lower branch and pull himself up, but it was another minute before he caught his breath and could see Moka standing on another tree nearby. The wind seemed to pick up again, tossing her hair and pulling her skirt and indecently high, showing a different flash of white every few seconds.

"Why do you do it?" she asked him, almost making him jump in surprise at the suddenness of her words. "Why do you hide from your strength? Haven't you mastered your darkness by now?"

"I don't know yet," Nigeki answered. "And what does that even mean? Do you think I should use the Bloodstone all the time or something? I can't, it would even kill one of us if it was overused."

"Do you know that for a fact?" she asked.

"Do I **look** dead to you?" Nigeki asked incredulously.

An amused smirk formed on the corner of Moka's impassive face. "You're avoiding the question," she replied.

"And what is the question?"

"Are you that damaged, little boy?" she said. "Is that belt of yours the only way you can be strong, or is there a salvageable vampire in you somewhere after all?"

He pushed off the branch he was on and dropped to the ground as gracefully as he could, superhuman reflexes guiding him to a gentle stop in a crouch. Moka landed across from him a second later, not even making a sound as she landed too. "What do you even care?" Nigeki sighed in exasperation. "You're actually locked up by this," he said, holding up the Rosario. "Even tighter than I was."

Suddenly she sprinted across the space between him and grabbed him by the shoulders, pressing him against the trunk of the tree, but not nearly as hard as he'd been expecting. She fixed him with her gleaming red eyes. "Maybe I'd enjoy myself a little when I'm out if I had a worthy rival, someone who could really give me a run for my money. Maybe if they did, I'd show them a thing or two about how a real vampire fights," she answered. "Think about it." Before he could reply she snatched the Rosario out of his hand and locked it into her choker again.

The gentle outer Moka, restored to control, looked over her shoulder at Nigeki and started back toward school. Not knowing what to say after what the other Moka had said, Nigeki followed her back in silence.

* * *

The next day the Drama Club met, and Nigeki wasn't surprised an understudy had been appointed for his role in the play they were working on. He was a little surprised to find out who it was: Enrique Sakamoto, the Brazilian boy and secretly a fishman who was apparently a son of one of a group of legendary monsters, the Darkstalkers.

"No offense," Nigeki began, "but aren't they kind of worried of setting the opposite mood with you starring in the play? Get the feeling the Phantom would get a lot of wet panties thrown at him instead…"

Enrique laughed at the remark. "You're not so bad-looking either, you know," but then just smiled and innocently asked, "What?" at the strange look Nigeki gave him.

"You're like that?"

"Maybe," Enrique replied with a mischievous grin. Nigeki looked hard down at his script at that remark. "What?" Enrique persisted. "I making you uncomfortable being around someone who might like guys?"

"Do you?" Nigeki asked without looking up.

"Maybe," Enrique answered him again with another grin.

Nigeki cut in, "Look, let me see you do this part here, okay? After Erik takes Christine into the catacombs and is in the boat back to his lair—"

But Enrique reached out and pushed the script away from him. "What is with you? Are you really that worked up over what I said?"

"I notice you didn't say 'the joke I made,' " Nigeki said, still not meeting his eyes and gazing out the window instead.

Enrique said nothing about that. "Are you all right? You seem totally wound up today."

Finally Nigeki turned and looked him in the eye again, and for just a second there was a crimson gleam in them that made the Brazilian take a step back. "I'm just thinking about something a girl said to me," Nigeki admitted.

"You had a lot of them coming to help you when you got in trouble before," Enrique commented with a cautious smile. "What did she say?"

"She wants to see if I can do something. Something intense…she wants a rival," Nigeki answered distantly. "I'm wondering if I should."

* * *

It was a strange sensation Simon Belmont had as he stepped from the glass tube, the colorful fluid he'd been covered in a second ago draining away. It was like being born, he thought, but he'd already gone through that again recently.

Still, the treatments, whatever they were, seemed to be working. His muscles were tighter and heavier than they'd been even when he fought his way into Castlevania the first time. Whatever was happening when he was bathed in those liquids, it was making him stronger every time, and it wasn't as if he didn't feel like he could beat any monster already.

He picked up and put on the pile of strange clothes he'd been given, something his host called a "tee-shirt" and "blue jeans". Once he'd put them on the door into the room rose into the wall and in came a man wearing a suit as dark as his neatly-trimmed beard. "How are you reacting to your treatments, Simon?" he asked cordially, but Simon couldn't help noticing there was nothing friendly about it, his tone was all business. Still, he supposed it was to be expected. Robert Blacher had brought him back to life to do a job, not because he was lonely.

"Very well, I think. I feel like I've got the strength of ten men."

"More like eight and a half, but we'll get you there," Blacher replied. "Are you used to your new weapons? Gotten the hang of your whip again?"

"Yes, I have," Simon assured him. "I certainly hope you aren't expecting me to use it on _children,_ Blacher," he added pointedly.

Blacher shook his head. "No, Simon. You were revived to help us protect humanity from the worst of threats, and we've found one." Simon raised an eyebrow and nodded for his host to go on, which Blacher did. "We've managed to discover a group of powerful monsters with an extremely dangerous plan in mind."

"Oh? What is this plan?"

Blacher was silent for a minute before he answered. Simon was about to ask him what was so dangerous before Blacher suddenly spoke. "They plan to escape from the land of the dead."

Simon clenched his fists.

* * *

 **Here's another chapter, kind of light but maybe shedding some light on my spin on some of these characters.**

 **Since there seems to be some confusion over this, especially after introducing a gimmick from High School DxD, I need to put something to bed: this is going to be a "one girl wins" story. There's not going to be a harem ending in Kamen Rider Bloodstone, because I find those boring. I'm sorry if that loses me some readers, but that's how it is. But I don't expect to have one girl in mind as the final victor throughout the entire series. I've already changed my mind once. Might even change it back.**

 **On a more positive note, I think I've found a good angle to fill out some chapters of this arc before getting to the next big confrontation I'd originally planned for it instead. Bloodstone and Revenant enduring the abuse of the host of a classic VCR horror game. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, even with it being kind of light.**


	19. Chapter 19: Yes, My Gatekeeper!

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 19 – Yes, My Gatekeeper!**

The figure in a tattered suit and top hat placed his withered grey hands on his goal. It looked like nothing more than weathered stone dome sticking out of the ground in the middle of the field of broken flagstones. Around the edge were six round niches big enough for a person to stand in, and in the center was a giant black plug.

"Here it is!" he crowed. "They all doubted me, but here it is! The Well of Fear!"

"You lie, Samedi," a bent figure with stringy hair and a beak-like nose croaked at him. "If there was such power here as you claim, even if it was sealed, I could tell!"

Samedi cackled with laughter and whirled around her in a circle, battered top hat in hand. "The greatest seal for the greatest power!" he gave out a dry laugh, and the bent figure growled warningly at him. Undaunted he went on, "And yet the **greatest witch** needs that explained to her? Guess I'm not surprised!" He spun the brim of his hat on one finger then tossed it into the air where it landed effortlessly atop his skinless head.

She pointed a long, bony finger with a curled black fingernail on the end at him. "You watch your wormy little tongue, wart!" she hissed. "You haven't earned any status just because you gave yourself a fancy title! My powers are just as great as yours!"

" **All** of our powers will be unstoppable once we open that," he pointed to the stone dome with a decayed finger. "I'll be more than **Baron** Samedi then!"

"And I suppose you have **that** figured out as well," his companion replied in her dry voice.

"Of course, Madam de Chantraine!" he said, whipping his hat off and moving into a melodramatic bow. A high, snickering laugh filled the air.

She hissed in anger. "Samedi, if this is one of your stupid jokes…!"

But a thunderclap that made the ground itself tremble and shook dust off the Well of Fear was their answer. A voice roared, "You've got bigger problems than a stupid joke, **MAGGOTS!** "

He gave a sniggering laugh, lashing their ears like a whip.

* * *

Laid out sweating and panting on his futon, Nigeki Hitoribo thrashed back and forth, thumping the floor with his arms and feet as he dreamed.

He was in the forest around the school, a full moon tinged with red hanging in the sky. He spotted someone in the trees and let out a snarl as he broke into a sprint after them, his instincts a wall of screaming voices to pursue, to chase them down and to show them his power. He was a vampire, the mightiest of the creatures of the dark.

His kind were to be respected, a respect born of fear. Fear of their strength, their ability to draw the life out of their victims. The rest of monsterkind **owed** him and his race allegiance. The icy glint of pure, piercing terror in his prey's eyes as they saw him and realized what he was proved that. He put on a burst of blinding speed and then pounced, knocking them to the ground.

"Not bad," said a voice behind him and he looked over his shoulder to see Moka Akashiya standing there. It was the true Moka, he realized, ivory hair billowing out in the chill wind and her red eyes seeming even brighter in the moonlight. "Crude, but there's hope for the future."

Her words snapped him out of the hunter's frenzy he'd been in, and with fear clenching his heart Nigeki turned back to see just who he'd attacked that had earned the vampiress's praise…

Then from out of nowhere he heard a deafening pounding and dropped whoever he'd been holding to go into a defensive stance. He looked back and forth trying to spot what new danger could be making the noise.

And then his eyes snapped open when the noise broke through the dream he'd been having. Immediately they snapped shut again from the blinding sunlight pouring through his window. But the pounding on his bedroom door became even louder and more insistent as he groaned and tried to telepathically force whoever it was away.

Realizing it wasn't going to happen, Nigeki twisted the lock to open it and then suddenly the door exploded open and someone tackled him to the floor. His instincts were shifting to defend himself when he realized his "attacker" was rubbing their cheek against his chest.

"You're soooooooo waaaaaaaaaarm," she purred, and then he recognized the cape and pointed hat. "And smooooooooooooth." That was when he remembered he'd only worn sweat pants to bed.

"Yukari, get off me. Please," Nigeki squirmed under her but she held on even tighter.

"Nooooooooo!" the witch protested. "We have to get your homework done! You didn't get any done after you and Moka left!...What did you two need to talk about, anyway?"

"I don't know what they talked about," another voice cut in, "But I know what **I** need to talk to him about." In the doorway stood a svelte woman with blazing blue hair tied back in a ponytail that only seemed to make her look even more fierce. She whipped off her glasses and looked down at them with mild annoyance. "I ought to report this," Felicia said without emotion.

"Report **what**?" Nigeki protested. "I told her we're not a couple!"

"Not yet!" Yukari corrected him. "But I'll convince you!"

Felicia sighed. "There's a job for you, kid."

"Great! Where are we going?" Yukari gushed.

"Not **you** , kid," Felicia said. " **Him** , kid."

Yukari thrust her bottom lip out in her best pout. Felicia gave the hardest unimpressed face Nigeki had ever seen.

* * *

The hooded figure of the Headmaster wasn't behind his massive desk as Felicia led the way into his office. Nigeki was about to ask what was going on, but stopped himself when he saw who else was there. Most surprising of all was Moka Akashiya, his fellow vampire, who gave him a soft wave but looked over at the other occupants of the office. Toriel was talking and laughing with another woman, who said something that made the curvaceous Home Ec teacher laugh, her white curls bouncing. As always Nigeki couldn't help staring at her, and Toriel smiled lightly in embarrasment to see him looking at her so intently.

But talking to Toriel was a girl he'd never seen before, wearing a bright pink kimono. It contrasted with the blue ponytail almost as bright but not nearly as thick as Felicia's own. Clutched in her hands was n oar. Who was she?

"Ah, is he the one, then?" the girl with the oar asked, patiently but all business. She looked Nigeki up and down and smiled lightly.

"This is him," Felicia replied. "I want it on record that I'm not in favor of sending him on something this dangerous."

"Neither am I," the paddle-wielder replied. "Still, the people I usually enlist aren't back from their last assignment just yet." She walked over to Nigeki and bowed. "Nice to meet you, Hitoribo-san. You may call me Botan."

The vampire nodded at her. "Nice to meet you too, Botan. But what's so important you came here to find me?"

"Oh, there are a group of dangerous monsters trying to escape from one of the most secure prisons of the spirit realm," Botan explained casually. Nigeki scratched the back of his head. Was that all? "And not to sound rude but we need to leave at once. If they succeed, the damage they would do to your secrecy would be irreparable."

"Look, I'm glad to help, but stopping a bunch of monsters from escaping Hell?" Nigeki asked dubiously. "Isn't that a little above my experience level?"

Botan's expression hardened almost imperceptibly at the question; he probably wouldn't have noticed at all if he hadn't been born a hunter. "Young man, this is an emergency and I've no time for smart remarks!"

"Young man…?" Moka asked. Nigeki had to agree with how weird it sounded: Botan looked like she could be in the same class as the two of them.

"I'm much older than the two of you," Botan replied, "But there's no time for lectures. Everyone here has been gathered to help prevent a disaster. Go and get that motorbike your brother made for you. You'll be needing it to make the crossing into a cordoned off realm like the one we'll be going to." With that she opened the windows to the balcony, sat on her oar and floated out toward the quad.

"But what—" Nigeki started to protest, but a warm hand closed gently around his shoulder. A hand covered in soft white fur. Toriel had already dropped her disguise and taken on her goat-like features for what was ahead.

"If there's an emergency, child, we need to move quickly," she said softly. "Go and get your motorbike. We'll meet you outside, all right?"

"…of course," Nigeki said without any thought at all, then walked out of the room with a powerful stride and a slightly glassy look in his eyes.

As she watched him go, Moka frowned slightly at his reaction to Toriel's words.

* * *

Nigeki strapped on his helmet from atop the Crossbow, his sleek new motorcycle sent to him by the family. He leaned over the handlebars, but quivered a little as Moka looped her arms around his waist to ride with him.

"They really asked you to come too?" he whispered over his shoulder.

"They said you need someone to watch your back," Moka replied with a slight nod. "I don't think they really meant me, though," she went on. He nodded back, not having to guess who they **did** mean. Did the Headmaster know about last night, **too**? He looked over at where Felicia had already peeled down to her fur and mounted a motorcycle of her own with Toriel sitting behind her, and a chill went up Nigeki's spine as he watched Toriel press herself against Felicia's arching back for the ride.

"So what are we doing here, exactly?" Nigeki called up at Botan, who hovered over them on her paddle. She pointed to the far end of the quad where a rectangle of softly shimmering blue light formed.

"Go as fast as you can and drive through that," she commanded. Nigeki nodded and started his bike down the stretch of ground but immediately it started to swerve and tilt. He fought to keep it upright while Moka squealed and held herself against him even tighter, which only made his attempts to keep them from falling even harder as her warm, pillowy chest mashed up against his shoulders!

"Looks like there's something else I need to teach you how to do, kid!" Felicia called in amusement.

None noticed the small crystal orb the zipped out of the bushes and into the pocket of Nigeki's jacket.

After another couple seconds he managed to get his bike under control long enough to drive through the portal Botan had made just behind Felicia and Toriel. Botan flew through it behind them and once they were on the other side she flew up into the sky.

And the other side…was a place of desolation. They were on a long road that ran out of sight in both directions but was made of cracked, bleached paving stones. Ahead of them two other paths of decimated stone forked off from the one they were on, and behind Nigeki could see one branching off in the distance.

Surrounding the road were massive buildings that stretched out of sight. To the left was one carved out of stone with crenelated Roman columns and massive metal double doors with the face of a bearded man engraved into them. Off to the right of the road was a more modern building with tall glass windows and rusted pipes running all up and down the outside. From inside flashed a weird orange light every few seconds, but Nigeki couldn't begin to see what was causing it.

Scattered around were other intimidating buildings from different times and places; here a rickety stone tower, there a rusted-out building of currogated steel that looked like a slaughterhouse, beyond it the dropping walls of a wooden hut that was about to fall over, while beyond **that** was an old, low brick building with dark neon signs advertising beer brands in the windows. At the corners of the strange buildings were old lampposts with smashed and empty lamps, along with dried up, leafless trees whose branches looked like long fingers that were waiting for something to grab onto. Even to the students at Youkai Academy they looked eerie and threatening.

Weirdest of all was that above them was a black sky with no moon or sun, just stars. As Nigeki look at them for a few seconds, he realized they were moving back and forth on their own.

"What's wrong with the stars?" Nigeki asked. "They're moving."

"Those aren't stars, kid," Felicia replied.

"They aren't?" Toriel asked, looking up for herself. "OH!"

Suddenly one swooped down, still above the roofs of the buildings around them, but far enough for the party to see that it was a glowing white human man, wrapped in heavy black chains around his entire body and dangling by his feet from something so far in the distance not even Nigeki and Moka could make it out. His eyes were empty black pits and his mouth gaped open in a silent scream. A second later he was pulled back into the darkness above where he swayed alongside the other points of light.

"This is a prison for the very worst souls," Botan explained emotionlessly. "Do not expect to find allies here."

"So what **is** the plan?" Nigeki asked. "If you made us come to Hell I'd at least like to hear why."

Botan landed nearby and stepped off her oar. "Your teachers will remain here and guard this spot. Since this is where we entered, it will be the only safe place to leave. You and your friend will need to find the Well of Fear, and keep the Harbingers from opening it with the Keystones." She held out her hand and a small round mirror appeared. The mirror shimmered and transparent images of buildings and roads, with a couple of strange icons clustered around: a goat, a set of three curved shapes like claws, a paddle and two drops of blood. "This will show you your surroundings, the locations of hostile beings and nearby Keystones, which are powerful talismans that can be used to open a way back to the mortal world. What I need you to prevent at all costs is the Harbingers getting all six before my reinforcements can arrive."

Nigeki sighed lightly but took the mirror. "Who are you anyway, Botan?" he asked.

"I serve one of the figures charged with maintaining order in the spirit world," she answered.

"And he asked for **us** when your usual guys were busy?"

"Miss Akashiya's mother was one of the Three Dark Lords. She's already connected to a great legacy," Botan replied matter-of-factly. "And because of what you've already agreed to become part of, you've also attracted the attention of powerful players in things to come."

"I guess I've got to, then," Nigeki said and revved Crossbow's engine. Uncertainly, Moka got on the back behind him, and they sped away, veering awkwardly down the broken road.

* * *

A flock of skinless birds went flying from the dead tree they'd been resting in as a column of white light split the sky for just a second and slammed into the ground at a four-way junction of the broken road. When the light cleared, standing there was Simon Belmont, vampire hunter, dressed in red and black leather vest and pants, beside him a blonde girl in a red dress with a basket of goodies clutched in her hands. Around them were six boxy robotic soldiers.

"We could move faster on our own," Simon murmured.

"But we'll have way more kills with all this extra firepower," BB Hood grinned, only her fiendish smile visible in the darkness of her namesake. "Makes me wish I had more room to haul monster carcasses out of here…I bet I can make a fortune off what's left of these Harbingers."

Simon sighed, flicked open the weird rectangular device he'd been given before they'd been sent and spotted a glowing shape of a key in a building a short distance away. "Let's go."

He'd barely taken a single step before suddenly thunder cracked and a lightning bolt ripped across the darkened sky. " **STOP!** " a voice bellowed, and against the dark sky appeared a giant ghostly face. It was of an elderly-seeming man with craggy, pock-marked skin, wearing a ragged hood. "I…am the Gatekeeper!" he shouted down at them.

"I've seen uglier than you," Hood growled. "Fire!"

Each of the robotic soldiers took a step back, pivoted toward the sky and rolled a massive cannon out of their chest cavities. As one they fired shimmering yellow beams from their weapons that met at one spot and formed into one massive blast that ripped through the air and crashed into the Gatekeeper's visage. For a second a look of surprise appeared on his face, then he faded from sight.

Hood looked over at Simon, smirking. "See? More guns are always better."

"Yooooooooo-HOOOOOOOOO!" crooned a voice from above and behind. They spun around to see the Gatekeeper floating above them again, grinning a grin full of pointed yellow teeth. "This is my game, and I make the rules! Why don't we see how your friends like a little timeout in…the **Bleggol**!"

"The WHAT?" Hood sputtered. The Gatekeeper's sniggering laugh was his only reply. The robots turned toward him to fire again but as they did a point of pure, bottomless blackness formed in the air above each of them and then zoomed down, covering them completely. Then the blackness disappeared, leaving no trace of their reinforcements. Hood fired a missile out of her basket at the Gatekeeper, who gave the incoming weapon a bored look and it spiraled off in a different direction, exploding somewhere among the decrepit buildings a minute later. A thoroughly inhuman cry of agony shook the buildings on either side of them.

"Oooooh, now look what you did," the Gatekeeper shook his head but grinned mockingly. "I'd get going before he comes looking for whoever upset him!"

"Whatever he is, he can have what's left of you when I'm done!" Hood yelled and reached into her basket for another weapon.

"Don't—" Simon tried to warn the mercenary, but he already knew he was wasting his breath.

The Gatekeeper let out his sniggering laugh once again. "I think you can stay there and think about what you've done for a little while!" he cooed, and immediately Hood froze in place, her face trapped in a look of surprise with her eyes darting back and forth as the sound of something massive slithering closer came from the distance.

"And as for you, little one," the Gatekeeper addressed Simon, "Off you go to find your precious little key. And you should probably put that little suit of yours on. There's things here that would make even **your** hair turn white. And wouldn't it be a shame to lose that?" he added with a snigger.

"Like the thing coming to eat **her** while she's totally helpless?" Simon retorted.

"Maybe so, maybe no," the Gatekeeper grinned. "If she does it's what she gets for being rude to the one running the game. But if **you** have some manners, you might just make it to the end."

Simon looked over at Hood, who looked back at him, her hand still plunged into her basket with her fingers wrapped around a weapon she couldn't even use. He couldn't just leave her at the mercy of whatever that thing was, but from what he'd just seen he doubted the Gatekeeper was something even his family's enchanted whip would do a thing against. If there was a time at all to confront him, this wasn't it.

Instead he bowed lightly. "Yes, my Gatekeeper."

"Oooooh! I like that!" the Gatekeeper giggled.

With one last look over his shoulder at Hood, Simon slipped away down the broken road, toward the Keystone he needed to find before anyone else had the chance.

"Henshin!"

* * *

In the shadow of a burnt out skyscraper Baron Samedi finally stopped. His search was proving more complicated than he'd planned, with it turning out the Well of Fear had not just a seal but a guardian. And such a powerful, sarcastic guardian at that…

A dark shape stepped out of the shadows next to him, and what was left of Baron Samedi's sense of smell screamed in alarm. "Khufu," he said quietly. "What news?"

"Not good," the newcomer spoke. His body was wrapped in filthy bandages but over it he wore golden necklaces and bracelets, the marks of his status in his previous life. "Hellin's gone. That 'Gatekeeper' sent her someplace. The Bleggol, I think he said. Something about 'collaboration between players is against the rules.' You never said anything about him, Samedi. I've half a mind to back out of this stupid alliance of yours."

"It'd have to be, it's all that's left of your miserable mind," Samedi retorted. "And if you've got a better way to get out of here, I'd love to hear it, you pile of linen-wrapped trash."

Khufu growled lightly in his ancient throat, but said nothing. Baron Samedi sneered, "I thought so. What about the others? What about the Keystones?"

"Gevaudan had one, Bathory found another one I think. I'm on my way to find one of my own now," Khufu answered. "What about you, 'Baron'?" he added with contempt.

"I know where one's hidden and I'm on my way there," Baron Samedi explained. "Meet me back at the Well of Fear once you've found yours. Now let's go, before that Gatekeeper decides to peek in on us."

Khufu nodded, but croaked, "Yes, but if this is some kind of trick, so help me Samedi, I'll make sure your suffering never ends!"

But the Baron just laughed in his bandaged face. "I think you were in that pyramid a **little** too long…where do you think we are?!" Then he danced away down the road from Khufu. A minute later when he was sure he was alone, Baron Samedi twirled his battered top hat off his head and tipped something from inside it into his hand: a small stone tablet engraved with the image of a blue key. Smiling with his decayed teeth, he hid it away again and set off to find his next Keystone.

* * *

Checking their map again, Nigeki and Moka stopped outside one of the weird, mismatched old buildings making up this ghostly prison. Nigeki climbed up to peer in one window, and Moka gazed at his back as he looked in for another minute and then jumped down again. "I don't see that Keystone," he reported, "but there's this big hole in the middle going underground. I bet it's down there. Let's get going."

"You're different."

"…what?" Nigeki asked, caught by surprise by Moka's statement.

"Back when we started school…you said you were trying to stay out of fights and everything. All the other kids couldn't wait to start one. I really liked that about you," Moka said softly. "I understood when you needed to fight to help someone in trouble but now…but now. But now the school's actually sending you out to fight people. I'm worried, Nigeki. You don't….you don't **like** fighting other monsters now, do you?"

He knitted his brow and looked at her in confusion, but replied, "Are you worried I'm turning into a 'Kamen Rider' for real, or something?"

Moka shrugged helplessly. "I don't know. You're going out and fighting other monsters and now I'm here too, and the other me, the **real** me, she wants to hunt with you sometime…I'm scared."

Nigeki put his hand on her shoulder, then lightly cupped her chin and lifted her face up to look him in the eye. "Okay, Moka? Don't say you aren't the 'real' one."

"But she's the one who was born, I just seal—" Moka started to protest.

"Maybe there's two girls named Moka Akashiya who go to our school," he interrupted. "But they're both real people. You're worried about this, right? You're thinking your own thoughts. You're real too.

"And second, well, what am I turning into that's so scary, Moka?"

"You're turning into someone who goes out and fights. Who takes dangerous risks. And you already wear that belt and that armor…you're turning into a Kamen Rider," Moka explained, her throat dry, clearly badly unsettled by what he asked her to think about. "You're my best friend, Nigeki. I thought it would be nice going to school with someone who didn't want to fight or hate other people. I'm worried about losing that, losing **you** , if this keeps happening."

Nigeki looked away, checking the map again as if making sure the thing they were looking for hadn't moved while they'd talked. After another minute he answered, "Moka, I'm finally doing something that makes a difference. I spent my whole life before I got to come to Youkai Academy just hiding from my problems. Now I'm taking them on, and I feel great about myself for the first time in my life."

He let a second pass so Moka could process his words before he went on. "I don't know if this means I'm actually a Kamen Rider or not. But I do know I can't stop now. I'm sorry if it worries you that I'm changing, but I know it's better this way than before. Now, do you want to help me go get that Keystone?"

"I'll go anywhere with you," said another voice, and Nigeki and Moka both looked toward where it had come from. Standing there, a small crystal orb in one hand and her toy-like and in the other, was Yukari Sendou, a slightly sheepish smile on her face.

"YUKARI!" Moka exclaimed, sinking to her knees to look the witch in the face. "What are you doing here?!"

She answered by holding up the orb, the same one that all of Nigeki's friends had been sent by his family, and which allowed them to combine with him into a single monster of awesome power. That is, if there was a powerful bond between them.

"I came to help!" Yukari exclaimed cheerfully. "I saw both the people I'm going to marry going on a secret mission, and I thought this would be a great time for us all to get closer together!" She jumped forward and looped her arms through both of theirs.

All at once they were interrupted by a sound from above, a loud snorting. They all looked up and spotted an image of a floating face, an old man with a mottled complexion and wearing a ragged hood. He looked to be snoring but after a second his eyes flicked open and seemed to freeze them in place. "Is that all you're going to do down here? Talk?" he giggled at them. "You're more boring than daytime soap operas!"

"Who…who are you?" Moka asked.

"I am…the Gatekeeper!" he replied with obvious relish. "And while you kids are spending your time talking about your oh-so-important **feelings** , you're falling behind in the game!"

"What?!" Nigeki shouted. "What are you? What game?"

"I already told you!" the Gatekeeper sneered. "And everything's a game! But the idiots like **you** who let yourselves get distracted with stupid little problems will just fall behind!"

"Hey, wait…somebody's in there!" Nigeki whispered, peering through the wind of the building they'd been about to enter. Indeed, a figure moving in a slouching, shambling walk had come in from the other side and slowly started to descend into the hole. Even in the weird half-dark of that Hell, Nigeki was sure the strange man was wrapped from head to toe in dirty bandages.

"Somebody's in there! And he just went underground! Let's hurry!" Nigeki whispered to the girls. He snuck along the wall to a jagged hole and slipped inside the building, then down through the hole in the floor the man, or rather the mummy had taken. But as soon as he'd gotten to the next floor his nose was assaulted by a smell he couldn't identify but almost knocked him on his ass. "Of course…Hell would have these too," he muttered.

"Is everything okay?" Moka called from above, having stopped when she saw him stop and clutch his nose.

"Aside from the fact that I'm standing in a sewer, I guess so," Nigeki answered. Then there was a squelch and he sank up to his ankles in a puddle of stagnant water and sludge. "Look, I'll go find that Keystone on my own. You two stay up here, make sure nobody sneaks up on me."

"Wait!" Moka called. "What if you get in trouble? Don't you need someone around to combine with now?"

Nigeki shook his head up at her, trying to give her a confident smile. "I've been having fight practice with Miss Bast, and she's so tough she's guarding the way back out, remember? I'll be okay."

But Moka flung herself over the edge, and for a second all Nigeki could see was a flash of pink under her skirt. She skidded down the wall and dropped down next to him with a splash. Yukari jumped down next and Nigeki looked away until he heard another, smaller splash behind Moka. "No!" Moka said. "They wanted me to come and help you! Maybe I don't like it, but we can't leave yet…We can figure out how I feel about what you're doing later. But for right now…" Moka reached out and clasped Nigeki's hand in hers.

But before she could say anything else a deafening roar, like the engine of a motorcycle reverberating down the tunnel. In a second balls of light appeared in the distance and came streaking toward them. After another second Nigeki could see the intruders: a group of skull-faced bikers on motorcycles made of steel-plated bones and belching green flame from outrageously huge and elaborate exhaust pipes. The bikers had wispy white hair and wore black leather jackets and Stetson hats. Suddenly another row of them came roaring up from the other direction, fencing the group in.

"What are those things?!" Moka squealed.

"Soul Rangers," Yukari whispered, her voice dry. "They're the scavengers of the underworld…they attack weak prey and leech off their energy to survive."

Nigeki cracked his knuckles. If they took too long that mummy would find the Keystone, and then the Harbingers would be that much closer to escaping back to the world of the living.

Suddenly the Soul Rangers surged forward on one side while backing away on the other. Nigeki grabbed Moka and Yukari, pulling them away from the ghostly attackers. It only took him a second for him to see what they were trying to do: push him and his friends away from the opening in the ceiling and an easy escape. In another few seconds the three of them were driven back into the sewer tunnel, completely blocked off.

The Soul Rangers revved their spectral engines and started driving in circles through the muck around the students. Yukari clung to Nigeki's leg, but he clenched his fists and steeled himself for a fight.

" **HENSHIN!** " he yelled. Yukari stepped out from behind him as red matter flowed from his belt and hardened into his armor once again. The tip of her wand glowed in readiness as his skull-mask locked itself around his head. Even Moka bit her lip and stepped away from Bloodstone.

"Ready, Kamen Rider?" Yukari asked, a teasing smile on her young face.

As she asked, one of the Soul Rangers broke away and steered straight at Bloodstone. He crouched then threw himself at the undead scavenger. There was a sudden *BOOM* and Bloodstone was thrown against the wall of the tunnel, leaving a crater where he hit. The Soul Ranger held up a smoking six-shooter and Bloodstone's armor had a smoking dent where the shot had hit him.

But behind his mask, he smiled a bit. He was Kamen Rider Bloodstone. It would take more than that to stop him, and if Botan's boss wanted him for this job, then he'd show them their money's worth.

"You want to pick a fight with me? I'll drink you dry," Bloodstone said, and as he did fangs sprouted from the upper lip of his mask. The Soul Ranger aimed and fired his gun at Bloodstone again, but the area around the young vampire turned grey as the bullet seemed to slow down in midair as if it was moving through wet cement. Bloodstone easily ducked underneath it and jumped over another shot from another Soul Ranger cruising by his side. Two criscrossed each other in the air but Bloodstone swung his arms out in an arc and batted them back where they came, knocking the two Soul Rangers off their bikes.

Then he jumped, somersaulted through the air and came down in a fearsome jump kick that knocked the first Soul Ranger down even as he fired another shot that grazed Bloodstone's head.

How much he'd changed since coming to Youkai Academy.

But for a second he thought about what Moka said, and wondered just what he was changing into…

Then the next thing he knew something had been pushed into his hand and a surge of power ripped through his body from his belt buckle. Bloodstone was thrown to the ground for a second, and when his head cleared he looked down to see Moka's Rosario clutched in his hand. Standing over him now, a grin on her beautiful but intimidating face, was the brutal alter ego of Moka Akashiya.

"Now then," she said, "Why don't we see if you've learned your place."


	20. Chapter 20: Living in the Nightmare

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 20 – Living in the Nightmare**

"Is that really what you're asking?"

There was a chill in the air even in the carefully sealed room they occupied. It would have made a tempting target, some of the wisest and most influential of Makai Realm's residents. And in such interests, their faces were shrouded in shadow and their voices muffled by sorcery to hide as much of who they truly were as possible.

"Is this some kind of joke?" the same obscured figure demanded. "Who **is** 'the Man who Speaks in Hands'? You called all of us here on no notice for a hunk of _gibberish_ like that?"

"My friend, this is why you should be keeping in better touch with your alma mater," another retorted. "This **sounds** like an idiotic prank, I admit. But then that exact message was painted on the back of my school, and not only my school but every monster school who responded to my inquiries. Which was more than those that didn't. Much more."

A wave of murmuring passed through the circle of envoys. The one who'd just spoken went on. "And not only that, this wasn't simple paint. It couldn't be removed even with magic. No mere vandal could create such a thing, and I'm becoming very worried about what's going on and what it means for the safety of our world."

"We've heard of you and how often you operate with plans and motives only you are privy to, M—" the first said, rising and pointing an accusing finger.

" **No names** , brother," another of them interrupted. The one he'd interrupted sat down heavily and crossed his arms. A few scattered sighs of exasperation rose from around the room. "Yes, we are all familiar with his 'games,' if you will. However, has he ever brought a truly frivolous case before this gathering of the Dark Lords?"

Another wave of murmurs passed through them but no-one argued the question, and he went on. "I've heard tell of similar things…my own grandson told his nanny about a giant flat head that talked about a 'man who speaks in hands' who fell into his own creation and had his life cut short. And that it wasn't wise to talk about someone who was listening to their conversation."

"A child's story carries weight with the Dark Lords now?" the first demanded.

"Then what about one of your own?" protested a feminine voice. "I walked into my own office just yesterday and there was a man wearing all black and with a smiling mask on inside. He wasn't searching for anything, he just stood there, and before I could decide what to do he just disappeared. One instant he was there and the next he wasn't.

"And some kind of **sound** was coming from those holes in the middle of his hands…it was in no language I could understand, but it was speech all the same."

Murmuring again. A voice rose up above it, "No language **you** could understand, my lady?"

Her hooded head bowed several times in a nod. Again, murmurs from the envoys. Another female voice rose up, "So we are in agreement that some unknown party is harassing us, and we have no idea of the extent of their power. Any suggestions on how to detect and catch them in the act?"

Although he didn't hold out much hope, Tenmei Mikogami sat down to listen carefully to his comrades' suggestions for what they could do to deal with their mysterious opponent. But for one person, he already knew it was too late.

* * *

The gang of Soul Rangers tightened their circle around Bloodstone, Yukari and Moka, spraying the three of them with smelly brown water kicked up by the Rangers' bikes. Yukari sputtered and coughed some of it back up, but the vampires were crouched in fighting readiness. Moka glanced over her shoulder at Bloodstone, but then she was off and running, ivory white hair dancing her behind her as she hurled herself at the first Soul Ranger unlucky enough to cross in front of her. She jumped and threw a roundhouse kick that knocked him off his bike with such incredible force he hadn't even hit the ground before he'd spun out of sight into the darkness.

Behind her she could feel the air starting to part around the bullet before she heard the blast of another Soul Ranger's gun. She leaned away and charged at him, but it was if the Soul Ranger could see what she was planning just a second ahead of her and the bullet still grazed her arm as she ran over at lightning speed and planted her foot in his rib cage with all the awesome force that was hers to unleash. He went flying off his bike and bounced off the ceiling with a crash before splashing down in the dirty water and splattering some of it on her blouse.

Moka grimaced in annoyance, but as she did the Soul Ranger she'd just slammed off his bike stood back up, the cracks in his rib cage starting to slowly flow back together, and his bike stood up at his side by itself.  
She launched herself at him again and he fired twice, one biting her shoulder and the other clipping her ear and blowing a wisp of cloudy white hair away. He was rewarded when she slammed her first straight into his skeletal face. His head jerked back but in less than a second Moka followed up with a high sweeping kick that knocked it right off his shoulders. Then she swung her arms in diagonal chops in different directions through his torso, shattering his ribs and arms. They fell into the water with a series of plops before the rest of his body toppled into the water, and this time it didn't get back up.

So these things were no match for her strength after all, she just had to be a little extra thorough than she was used to when taking them out. Without even looking she whirled around and lashed out at another two Soul Rangers behind her, taking their heads off with a ferocious spinning kick.

Like a streak of red, Bloodstone dashed and landed a kick on the front wheel of one of the skeletal bikers' machines. It swerved violently and narrowly missed crashing into Yukari, clipping the rear wheel of another Soul Ranger's bike instead. The first hit something hidden underneath the filthy water of the sewer tunnel and pitched forward, throwing the rider into the muck. The second skidded back and forth for a few seconds before slamming into the wall with a crash that echoed up and down the tunnel. The wall cracked where he'd hit and started to crumble.

A few of the others fired their spectral six-shooters at Bloodstone. The bullets left blackened dents in the armor around his chest and one dug into the softer red material on his arm, but he couldn't spare much of his attention to it.

As the wall came down, smashed by the Soul Ranger Moka had kicked into the wall, he noticed another tunnel on the other side, and limping away from them was a made covered in moldy bandages from head to toe. He looked back over his shoulder in alarm and started limping even faster.

"Hold it, Harbinger!" Bloodstone yelled but the mummy only dragged himself down the tunnel faster, clutching something to his chest in one bandaged hand. Bloodstone turned around and yelled to the others, "Let's go!"

"You go!" Moka replied, turning for just a second to face him, and Bloodstone was a little startled to see a red ribbon of blood trickling down her ear. Like this, in her true form, she'd always seemed liked the perfect predator: strong, swift, invincible. To see her hurt, bleeding…it was **wrong**. As she knocked a pair of Soul Rangers off their bikes with two kicks in midair she turned again for a second and grimaced as she saw him still there. "Go, idiot! They'll just chase us down if we all go after that mummy!"

"Yukari, let's go," Bloodstone said, turning to keep the mummy in his sights.

"But what about Mo—" the young witch started to protest, but stopped as a Soul Ranger's gun went off four times and Moka grunted in pain. Fresh tears in her uniform decorated her sides, and thin streams of blood from her wounds were trickling down her leg.

But Bloodstone pulled her away, after the mummy. "She's the strongest girl at school, right? She'll be fine. Besides, if these Harbingers can open a door from Hell, think about all the damaged they'd do." He cupped his hands behind his back, and with one last look over her shoulder Yukari jumped up and held on tight to his shoulders. Then Bloodstone ran down the tunnel after the mummy, the sound of a spectral gunshot seeming to echo even louder behind them.

Almost immediately Bloodstone lost him. But a second later he could hear the sound of feet being dragged through the ankle-deep sludge-water in the distance and chased after it. A minute later Bloodstone stopped at a junction, scanning for any sign of the mummy's passing. His senses were some of the keenest among the monster world, but they were being overwhelmed by all the various smells of rot and filth down there, and there wasn't much in something undead like a mummy for his senses to lock in on.

It wasn't helped by Yukari grinding her face into the back of his neck and whimpering softly. Bloodstone couldn't help cringing. A kid her age had no business being in a place like this, but he couldn't just turn around and drop her off at the door when he had a Harbinger to chase down. Too much was riding on this.

But then a few hundred feet away he could just hear a long, slow and very small splash in the water. It might've been something like a rat or whatever Hell had like them, but to his instincts it sounded like someone taking a step and trying not to be heard. Maybe like the mummy they were chasing down.

He bolted down the tunnel and after coming around the corner where he'd heard the noise he spotted the shambling form of the mummy walking into a large open room in front of them with a sloping pile of debris in one corner. If he climbed it he'd be able to get to the surface easily, but he suddenly stopped in the middle of the room and started mumble something through ancient purple lips. Bloodstone set Yukari down in the entrance and stalked closer to the mummy. "Hand over that Keystone!"

"No, wait!" Yukari screamed as the mummy raised his arms above his head and a small vortex of red power started to swirl between his hands.

"In the name of the chaos of Apep, of the spite of Set, feel the curse of the tombs!" He lowered his arms and the energy spun through the air to cover up Bloodstone. The flowing red patterns on his armor expanded suddenly but then shrank into small strands until they were almost invisible against the black. Bloodstone himself gave a dry gasp of pain as his skin retreated inward, showing bony outlines through his armor, and he bent forward while his legs creaked, like he'd suddenly been turned into an old man!

The mummy laughed. "Don't think I'm just another limping undead for you and your kind to stomp on, vampire! Khufu the mighty will return and raze the world of the living, and not even _you_ , who think you're the rulers of the night, will be safe!" He raised his hands to gather power for another attack.

And then the roof caved in above him and a dented metal wash tub broke itself in half over Khufu's head. "Leave him alone," Yukari whispered, but her voice quivered.

Khufu staggered and the power he was gathering disappeared. But then he turned to face Yukari and held up a withered hand, a black stone tablet with the shape of a key carved into it. "Let us duel, little witch," he proposed. "Your pitiful might against mine."

"I'm not bad," she retorted in another whisper.

Bloodstone stumbled a step closer, holding out a bony hand toward Khufu before he fell down and let out a pathetic, dry gasp. Yukari clenched her hands nervously for a second but steadied herself and desperately leveled her wand at Khufu, who just laughed again. "Maybe you aren't. But how do you I think I ended up here?! I mastered magic the world today doesn't even know about and I ruled an empire that lasted five hundred years! What have you done?"

"I'm in advanced placement."

When he heard that Khufu threw back his head and laughed. The stone in his hand, one of the Keystones that would give him his freedom from that place, started to glow as he focused his power through it. Then a slicing desert wind full of sand and angry, biting locusts blew into the room.

* * *

The lock rattled uselessly in Kurumu's hand, and the succubus scowled in annoyance. What was someone doing in the cooking classroom so late after classes, she wanted to know. Especially since she had a feeling she already did.

Glancing around to make sure nobody was nearby, especially that new head of campus security, then her wings uncurled out of her back and her barbed tail followed. She flapped once and hovered a few feet off the ground, just high enough to peek in the window.

And there, leaning over a stove and wearing asbestos gloves, was Mizore Shirayuki. Kurumu pressed her face against the glass to try to see what was in the pot Mizore was stirring, but Mizore set down her spoon and turned around to look right at her. She pulled the window open and leaned out.

"What?" Mizore asked in her usual toneless voice.

"What are you doing?" Kurumu asked, deciding to just along after being caught in the act. "You making some kind of treat for Nigeki?"

What Mizore said was the last thing she'd been expecting to hear. "Come in and see."

Kurumu climbed in the window and as soon as she did she pinched her nose shut from a thick, burning smell that filled the room. Then she saw how all along the counter were bowls that were full of black and purple stew with things like fish heads and chunks of food she couldn't even identify floating at the top. They seemed to be releasing a gas into the air, but Mizore didn't seem to notice. "What **are** those?"

"I'm trying out a recipe my mom sent me," Mizore explained. "She said she made it for my dad on their first date. My first tries didn't go so well…," she said, pointing to the bowls of poisonous slop. "I never really learned to cook before."

"Wow, yeah…," Kurumu said. "I'm kind of surprised…I mean, I was expecting you to attack me when you saw me."

Mizore only shrugged. "I'm not worried about you. I'm going to win, after all."

Kurumu bristled. "Oh yeah? You definitely said you knew just because you combined with him, it didn't mean you two were in love!"

"I also said it didn't mean we couldn't be if I tried," Mizore replied with a faint smirk. "That's another reason I'm going to win, I'm actually paying attention to the competition. And I'm actually working on a plan instead of just raging on another girl."

Kurumu hissed through her teeth but Mizore turned away from her and added a pinch of something else to the stew. The temperature didn't drop, and Mizore's hair didn't start turning into icicles the way it did when she was getting ready to fight.

After watching her for a minute and nothing happening, Kurumu cleared her throat. "So…back when that guy broke into the school and stole that whip…thanks for being around when Nigeki needed you to power him up."

"I'm always around," Mizore replied. "But you were around too that time, weren't you?"

"Yeah, I was. And maybe I choked for a second then," Kurumu confirmed, but then held up her fist. "But next time, I won't! I'm going to beat all of you in the end!"

Mizore surprised the succubus again by extending her hand. "I'll be looking forward to competing with you."

This made no sense. They were supposed to be enemies, weren't they? Kurumu reminded herself what she was supposed to do; wasn't she going to die if she didn't end up with the person she was destined to be with? She'd been told that over and over since she was little…for just a second as she shook Mizore's head with a steeled smile on her face, Kurumu wondered just what she'd be willing to try to win this.

And what she'd do if she didn't.

* * *

The ancient power surging through Khufu's Keystone intensified and Yukari was blown off her feet and slid across the floor until she crashed into the wall. She desperately clenched her tiny, trembling hands around her wand and sent a flurry of winged tarot cards flying at Khufu but the desert storm he'd summoned blasted most of them away before they could hit him. The rest just lodged in his body, not seeming to do any damage. Locusts landed on Yukari and bit into her skin, and around a scream of pain she barked an ancient word that surrounded her in a bubble of whistling air that blew them away.

But Khufu kept up the attack, winds howling and sand and biting insects bouncing off her, and the young witch's protective spell started to shrink.

She had been willing to help fight their enemies before. But she hadn't thought of the dangers of doing it: they were the heroes, justice was always carried out when they faced their enemies and bravely refused to back down. But now, Bloodstone for all his incredible power had lost his strength and Yukari was about to be obliterated by a crazy mummy.

Her stomach clenched like a fist with fear. She realized she was trying to think of the last thing her mother had said to her before sending her to Youkai Academy, and couldn't remember. Would Yukari ever get the chance to see her again? And she was already in Hell, or some part of it. What would happen to her if she died here? Would she be trapped forever, suffering the same as someone who'd been sent there because of their evil in life…?

Then suddenly the wind died down, and through the yellow haze of the sand Yukari could see that Bloodstone had dragged himself over to Khufu and sunk his fangs into the mummy's leg. He still looked like a skeleton in his shrunken armor, but he was attacking Khufu with what little strength he had left, to save **her**. Khufu cried out in pain and aimed the Keystone at Bloodstone, and for a second Yukari saw her chance.

She whipped her wand and another blast of winged tarot cards pelted Khufu, digging into his grey skin or getting tangled in his bandages. He growled in anger and fired another blast of harsh desert sand and locusts at her, making Yukari cry out and curl into a ball as it roared across the room to surround her.

"No!" Bloodstone screamed.

After a few deafening seconds Khufu lowered the Keystone and the murderous air-blast faded. On the other side of the room, there was nothing left but a tattered cape and pointed hat.

"You…bastard…!" Bloodstone wheezed pathetically.

"Then join her, **lord of the night** ," Khufu laughed. He pointed the Keystone at his helpless enemy, yelled a word of power and another blast of scalding air knocked him off the ground and he hit the wall with a horrible clattering of bones. Locusts landed all over him and started chewing through his armor. It would be a while before they got through, but Khufu laughed at the sight of the vampire stripped of all his legendary power. "Just the first of many, **boy**. Take some comfort in knowing you'll be out of the way first."

Then a strange piping music started to play, louder and louder until Khufu could hear it even above the wind he was conjuring. The locusts all over Bloodstone stopped chewing on him and seemed to look up at something above them. Khufu grunted in confusion and looked up to see Yukari sitting in a hole in the wall. Her clothes were torn and her wand, stuck through the waistband of her skirt, was scratched and battered. But she had a small flute to her lips and as she played it the locusts all over the room that Khufu had conjured suddenly splayed their wings and buzzed at him like a giant brown cloud.

Khufu screamed as they landed on him and chewed at his decayed flesh. He fired off the Keystone's power again and blasted some of them away but this just created even more locusts that swarmed him to the sound of Yukari's music. The evil mummy went down, surrounded by biting insects, and Yukari dropped from her perch over to where Bloodstone lay. She clutched his shoulders and gently rolled him onto to his back, and he gasped out, "What's going on?"

"He summoned those bugs, but he didn't think he'd need to actually control them I guess," Yukari answered as she examined him for wounds, which wasn't easy with his armor gone totally black. "We need to hurry, it won't stay like that for long."

But Bloodstone put a thin hand on her shoulder. "We can't leave, we have to get his Keystone away from him so he can't use it to escape."

"You're not up for a fight like—" Yukari protested, but he silenced her with a surprisingly sharp squeeze to her shoulder with how weak he looked.

"You let Khufu think he killed you on purpose so you could control his bugs without him trying to stop you, right?" She nodded. "What made you do something so risky?"

"Is this the time—" Yukari interrupted, but was interrupted herself by another authoritative squeeze to her shoulder. "I…! Because you and Moka were the first people who ever stuck up for me before. I had to save you but I'm not strong enough by myself."  
"Yukari," Bloodstone wheezed. "Maybe you aren't strong enough by yourself, and god knows I'm not…but it doesn't have to be one person who saves the day. You see what Khufu's like…you think you can feel what you felt for me, for everybody he'll hurt if he gets out of here? It'll be a disaster."

"Nigeki…I can't…"

An angry shriek seemed to shake the entire room as Khufu sent the locusts flying off him with a dark haze that seemed to ooze out of his bandages and dissolve in the foul air. His cry of anger faded just soon enough for him to hear another voice.

" **Hex Heart. Synch!** "

A flash of light came from where Bloodstone had been lying as power flowed through the Joining Nexus in his body. He stood up quickly, proudly, his body filling out again and the veins crisscrossing his armor throbbing loudly with strength. As Khufu watched a short purple cape trimmed in black unfolded from his shoulder armor. Lines of power carrying strange white runic symbols ran from his shoulders to his wrists and from his waists to the cuffs of his armored boots. His bone-white mask had gone completely smooth, except for a small black crystal orb lodged where his left eye would be. And over his heart was a small crystal orb, glowing with purple light with the image of a golden pentagram floating inside it.

"What are you?!" Khufu demanded.

Bloodstone said nothing, wordlessly passing a hand in front of the gem on his belt buckle, and a red rectangular shape with a short black handle appeared in his gauntleted hand. " **Hunters Myriad** ," declared the Bloodstone itself. Five points sprang out of the edges, forming a star shape. Then he swiped it through the air and a blast of hissing sparks, like miniature stars, jumped at Khufu.

* * *

He almost missed Hood's help.

Every shadow seemed to hide an enemy, eyes seemed to peer out of every crack in the broken ground. Even to a veteran monster hunter like Revenant, this place was chilling. It didn't exactly put the ever-shifting passages and dungeons of Castlevania to shame, but every few seconds he was sure he saw movement out of the corner of his eye but when he turned to look whatever he'd seen had scampered out of sight.

If indeed anything had been there in the first place.

Was anything there, or was the power of this dark place itself somehow mocking him? That Gatekeeper character seemed the type to mess with his prey…

Then he rounded the edge of a half-fallen building, heard a high-pitched cackle and ducked into the shadows of a pile of debris. He peered over it and the lenses in his mask zoomed in on a pair of humanoid shapes standing by a small fire. One looked like an old woman with wrinkled face and an impossibly long beak-like nose. Her spindly grey hair reached all the way down to her ankles and her gaunt arms were held high, two small stones with the shapes of keys engraved in them clutched between long hooked fingernails. Her eyes were nothing but dull black marbles, but he could recognize a kind of sight in them nonetheless as she stared deeply at the two stones.

"You've had your fun, Madam de Chantraine," interrupted the growling voice of the other, and at once Revenant recognized what he was. The blue color to his thick fur was unusual, but the long snout full of knife-like teeth, clawed fingers and powerful angular legs could only belong to one of the most fearsome of supernatural hunters, a werewolf. "Return that stone," he growled.

"Don't try my patience, beast," she croaked. "My grasp of the power these contain is far clearer than yours."

The werewolf started to growl in anger but his ears suddenly pricked up a second before the air cracked with the sound of the long whip that snaked out and struck the old woman's hands. She shrieked in pain and dropped the Keystones, but when the werewolf dove for them again the whip stretched out and lashed across his side. "Step away from those, Harbingers," Revenant commanded as he stepped into sight. "Anne de Chantraine the witch and Gevaudan the werewolf, I presume," he rattled off the names AGES intelligence had given him.

"And who in blazes are you?" Gevaudan demanded in a growl. "You don't look like the type to end up here." He looked Revenant's glistening armor up and down.

"When I first lived, I was named Simon Belmont."

"Belmont?" Gevaudan huffed, unimpressed.

But the witch went back a step, sparks jumping from her curled black fingernails. " **Belmont**?" she hissed in disbelief.

"Belmont," Revenant confirmed, then swung his arm and made his whip jump from the pod where it was mounted, giving Gevaudan second thoughts as he started to close in. "Fear my name," Revenant declared.

It was hard to tell with a wolf, but Revenant thought he saw a look of uncertainty cross Gevaudan's face. Then with the speed of a lightning bolt the wolf lunged for the two fallen Keystones. Revenant's whip cracked through the air and sliced against his side again but this time the wolf only clenched his teeth and grabbed at the stone tokens.

His furry fingers wrapped around one but the other lifted out of his grasp and floated over to the witch's gnarled hand. He glared at her, teeth still pressed together angrily and her only response was a toothy smile.

"No matter," Gevaudan growled, and the Keystone in his hand glowed with power. Then the next thing Revenant knew something had slammed into him that he had never seen coming and knocked him flat on his back. Gevaudan seemed to **appear** out of thin air above him, grinning a ferocious lupine grin and flicks of spit dripping from his jaws down onto Revenant's mask.

But that wasn't the first monster he'd tangled with, and this pain was nothing to him. Revenant brought back the arm his whip was mounted on but with a snarl the wolf clamped his jaws down on the monster hunter's arm, then yanked fiercely as if trying to pull Revenant's arm clean out of its socket. But the savage wolf was too focused on his seemingly helpless enemy, he didn't notice Revenant swinging a precisely-aimed chop right into the center of his throat.

Gevaudan let out a strangled cry and coughed blood onto Revenant's arm, yanking even harder with his teeth. Another chop and Gevaudan's mouth was torn away from him, shattered teeth flying away into the darkness. He retreated from Revenant but then turned into a black blur that dashed away out of the ruins of the building they were in. By the time Revenant had turned to face him the black blur had crashed into him and knocked him into the air.

This time Revenant was expecting it and twisted himself to get his legs behind him, letting him vault off the wall and fire off a pellet at the ceiling. It shattered, spraying holy water all over the area and the droplets burst into flame wherever they landed on Gevaudan. He howled in pain as he tried to beat out the patches of flame, and failed to notice the sound of Revenant's next attack.

" **Banshee Boomerang**."

The cross-shaped projectile came flying out of nowhere and crashed into the base of the werewolf's neck. He hit the ground with a crash and tried to roll out the flames on his body, but a booming voice distracted him from his own pain for a second.

" **Banishing Strikes.** "

Revenant's whip snaked through the air and slammed into his chest twice as hard as it had last time before retreating back into its mounting on Revenant's arm. But then it flew out and belted into Gevaudan again. Again and again the whip pummeled him, coming faster and faster until it was just a blur in the air striking without stopping. The whip was smoking as it retracted into Revenant's armor, and as Gevaudan went down his body disintegrated. A puff of smoke was left behind, the shape of a howling wolf's face appearing in it for a second before flying upward, his soul imprisoned once again with his defeat.

Revenant ducked back into the shadows then the monster hunter casting a cautious eye around for the other, but the witch was nowhere to be seen. She'd probably run off when she saw Revenant making short work of her comrade. He bent down to pick the Keystone that had seemingly given his enemy a burst of supernatural speed. Could it do the same for anyone…?

"Not bad!" called a cackling voice from above, and Revenant didn't even have to guess that the cowled, craggy face above belonged to the Gatekeeper. "But that old biddy moves pretty fast for an old lady, huh? She plays the game smarter than you, eh?"

He'd seen this being's power, and had no wish to end up in the "bleggol," or whatever this grinning ghost had sent the rest of his party. More humility seemed in order until he had a better idea of what he'd be up against. "I've been playing this game a long time, too. I'm—"

"Simon Belmont! Oh yes, I heard about you! We've got some of your old friends down here! Or should I say…up there!" The Gatekeeper craned his head back to look at the thrashing, glowing souls chained to the sky above them. "Just how old **are** you, anyway?" he sneered at Revenant.

"Aren't you more interested in this little game of-"

Thunder cracked and the thrashing souls overhead stopped moving out of fear. "Answer me, maggot! I asked you a question, and you answer!" the Gatekeeper roared, all joking gone from his voice.

"I was born in 1669," Revenant answered.

At once the Gatekeeper gave one of his snide, cackling laughs. "That's a really funny number! And oh boy! **Another** fossil! You'd better get after her! A **fossil** race, that's a good one!"

Revenant ignored the taunt. It was a nuisance that the other Harbinger had escaped, but as long as he had one of their precious Keystones, their plan couldn't be carried out.

But what would they do to get it back…?

* * *

A swarm of blinding sparks erupted in Khufu's bandaged face as Bloodstone's strange weapon swung through the air. He gasped in surprise as small fires erupted in his bandages but the Keystone in his withered hand glowed as he prepared to channel his power through it again.

But as he did Bloodstone grabbed the edge of his cape, whisked it up over his face…and then it dropped to the ground, completely empty.

Khufu looked around angrily and spotted five Bloodstones appearing out of thin air behind him. " **Chroma Pester!** " They held up their weapons and Khufu braced himself and with a roar they spewed a cloud of colorful ribbons and confetti all over him. Khufu scowled in rage and gathered his power for another attack, then realized only four of his opponents had piles of confetti at their feet.

" **Tub Polar!** " Bloodstone spun on his heel and as he came back around to face Khufu a cloud of small round magnets flew from the weapon in his hand and landed all over the mummy's ancient body. He felt a strange pulling sensation and for a second panicked at the thought of being pulled apart…would that even kill him with how he was already a member of the undead? Would he spend his eternity as a collection of living but disconnected body parts?

Then three portals suddenly opened in the air; above and to either side of him, then out of each flew a giant wash tub ten feet from end to end, pulled together by the magnets and mashing Khufu between them. They flickered away but already Bloodstone was launching another attack.

" **Crisis Popper!** " The dazed mummy flinched at the name and fired off a desperate blast of desert and locusts at his enemy, but only a stinging breeze came from the Keystone. Had Khufu used up its power? Or had he used up so much of his own power it had little to amplify anymore…?  
He had other things to worry about as Bloodstone suddenly charged and spun again, glittering spheres shooting from the end of his Myriad. They expanded until they were as big as the wash tubs that just all but flattened the mummy, but then his fear turned to anger as he recognized what they were.

Soap bubbles.

His anger faded and was replaced again by panic when he saw Bloodstone jabbing one of the bigger bubbles with a prong on his Myriad and then pulling his cape around himself to disappear. The bubble exploded with a deafening boom and then two touching it exploded too, and then more that had been touching them. Khufu was picked up off his withered feet and flung him across the room. He hit the far wall with a crash and just kept on going as the rock crumbled away.

He let out a feeble, dry wail with dust spurting from his lips as he hit the ground and finally lay still. Bloodstone grabbed the Keystone from where it had landed and tucked it into his belt, then suddenly went rigid.

* * *

Against a darkened sky with grey fog wreathing her feet, Yukari looked up and over one shoulder. Not far away Nigeki stared straight ahead at an image of the room where they'd fought Khufu.

"Did we kill him?" Yukari asked softly.

"I don't really think so," Nigeki said and slipped an arm around her shoulders, gently pulling her against him. "What kind of hell would it be if you could get out that easily?"

"But…" Yukari looked at him, eyes quivering, then looked away.

"What's wrong?" he asked with practiced patience, as if this wasn't the first time he'd had to comfort a frightened child. "It's all right, Yukari. You can tell me."

She threw her arms around his waist and jammed her face into his side. "That was so scary…he really wanted to kill us, didn't he? What would happen if we died down here?!"

Nigeki gently hooked his finger under her chin and raised her face up to look him in the eye. "Yukari, we didn't die, and it was because of you being brave, okay? I couldn't do anything, he turned me into a mummy too."

"I still don't think I like being in real fights," Yukari mumbled, and then shoved her face into his thigh again.

"Hey, look…!"

Yukari shrieked and pulled herself harder against him than ever. "Is he alive again?!"

"No, relax. It's okay, it's Moka," Nigeki said. Yukari looked up and indeed Moka was standing there next to them, her uniform torn to shreds. Someone she'd been fighting had taken care to rip open the top of her blouse and acres of soft white skin were spilling out of the space between the popped buttons. The top half of a Soul Ranger's skeletal remains still clung to one shapely leg and clawed uselessly at her skin with broken stumps of bone where his fingers had been. She casually kicked backward and sent the undead scavenger flying to shatter against the far wall.

"So you two didn't mess it up," Moka said, the faintest of smiles on her pale lips. Bloodstone said nothing, standing totally rigid, and Moka scowled. "What's wrong? Can't you talk?" she asked. He put the Hunters Myriad back in his belt, then reached up to where the orb was lodged in his chest armor and pulled it free. His form glowed, writhed and then split back into Bloodstone and Yukari Sendo.

"I guess I can't when I'm like that," Bloodstone shrugged. "Figure it. We can beat the ever-living crap out of a mummy, but I can't talk when there's someone else in there with me."

Suddenly his ears pricked up at the sound of a soft, but angry statement. "You overestimate your accomplishments." Khufu had gotten up from where he'd landed and was starting to chant, an accusing finger pointed at them. Bloodstone and Moka went into fighting stances and Yukari held up her wand.

" **Stop!** " roared an angry voice punctuated by a crack of thunder that shook dust from the ceiling. "What do you maggots think you're doing?" asked a transparent image of a floating face, of a craggy-featured old man wearing a ragged hood. "Players helping each other is against the rules! You two are **banished! To the bleggol!** "

And in the next instant they were gone, absorbed into a dark spot in the air above them that closed up as soon as they'd been pulled inside without a sound. Khufu let out a cry of anger almost as loud as the Gatekeeper's. "You **FOOL!** He had one of the Keystones! Now the rite is impossible to complete!"

The Gatekeeper just grinned and laughed at his rage. "It matters so much to you? Then why don't you go find it! You're banished too!" A point of darkness opened in the air above Khufu and drew him inside, then closed after him.

Moka took a step closer to the Gatekeeper's image, coming down with such force the ground cracked. Her fangs are out as she demanded, "Where are they? What did you **do** with them?"

His expression turned cheeky. "Tell you what, sweetie, ask me nice and I'll tell you all about it!"

She scowled, then ran past him and jumped through the opening in the ceiling.

"Your loooooss!" he called with a snigger after her.

* * *

It took Bloodstone a second to recognize that his eyes were in fact wide open, but all he could see was a weird blackness that he floated through like water. He could see his hand in front of his face, but the only the other thing he saw was Yukari floating nearby, and he reached out and grabbed her before she had the chance to drift away.

"What's going on?" he asked. "Where are we?"

"What makes you think I know?" Yukari asked, eyes wide with confusion and a trace of fear.

Bloodstone shrugged. "Well, you knew what those Soul Rangers were. I thought maybe you'd recognized what the 'bleggol' or whatever the hell he was saying was."

"Well, I think he was saying 'black hole,' " Yukari replied. "But I don't know where this is…or how we get out."

He sighed to hear the news. "I was afraid of that." Then he gasped in surprise and almost let go of Yukari as a gleaming robotic soldier, like the ones he'd run into at Witch's Knoll, smacked into his back. It aimed a weapon on its arm at him as it turned end over end but no attack ever came and a second later it was lost in the darkness.

A second later he could make out something else drifting closer, a large wooden box with paintings of clowns and a circus tent on the sides. It turned end over end as it came near them and suddenly the lid swung open, making Yukari shriek and cling to Bloodstone in surprise. A china doll popped out and stared at them with her icy, vacant eyes.

"The Keystones, give them to me," the doll said in a low moan. "Give them to us, and we will all be rulers when we escape this place…"

"Another Harbinger, huh?" Bloodstone asked. "No thanks!"

The box spun away from them, the doll fixing them with her empty gaze the entire time, and Bloodstone felt a chill race up his spine. Luckily for him Yukari tapped him urgently on the shoulder and he saw something else drifting their way. It was a man covered in dirty bandages: Khufu.

"Back for more already?" Bloodstone called out.

Khufu looked up in surprise at the call. "There's no point fighting now, vampire. We've been dropped in the Black Hole, the deepest part of the underworld. Many have fallen in, but few have ever made it back out. I can see why, now…"

Bloodstone grunted in annoyance. It was the last thing he wanted to do, but he said, "Look, maybe if we team up we can find a way out of here."

"Oh, no need for that." **I'll** be leaving shortly," he said, holding up another Keystone. "And don't get any ideas of fighting me into your pathetic little minds. **This** is the only thing that works in the Black Hole. You might as well be human for as long as you're here."

Yukari screwed up her face and pointed her wand at him defiantly but the glow at the tip had gone out. Bloodstone even noticed flecks of his armor starting to peel off and the light at his belt seemed to be fading as well.

Then without warning Khufu pushed himself through the void at them and grabbed the other Keystone out of the surprised Bloodstone's belt before he kept flying past into the darkness. Yukari grabbed Bloostone and whispered something in his ear, then pulled her knees up to her chin curled herself into a small ball.

Khufu clutched both Keystones possessively, a feeling of reassurance creeping through his ancient body. He'd hoped for the chance to put a few young upstarts in their place to remind himself what it was like, but soon he and the other Harbingers be out again, and there'd be plenty of people like them to put down…

Suddenly something slammed into his back and knocked him spinning into the void. Yukari unrolled herself and pushed off his back with her feet toward the Keystones he'd dropped when she crashed into him. One she grabbed in her hand, and hooked the hollow heart on the end of her wand around the other before it had a chance to slip away. Bloodstone drifted by and caught her by the arm a second later.

"Nice plan," he said.

"Thanks!" she beamed, clutching her hands to her chest.

"Maybe you're more ready to be brave than you think."

She flinched. "Can we figure that out later?"

"Sure. If you can figure out how to make that thing get us out of here," Bloodstone replied.

"Oh, that's easy," Yukari smiled confidently and held up one of the Keystones, channeling her power through it Then without warning a stream of winged tarot cards the size of refrigerators shot out of it and pushed them violently down until Yukari managed to get over her screaming and cut the flow through it.

"Wrong one," she said sheepishly. She held up the second Keystone, and a gentle glow washed over them.

* * *

For a minute Bloodstone wondered if they'd really gone anywhere until he could make out writhing points of light against the darkness. The damned souls shook back and forth above him, and he shivered and quickly looked around to see if he could recognize where they'd reappeared instead.

They stood in a ring of white stone obelisks, ragged chunks missing from most of them. He looked up and down the paths leading away from the circle but could see no-one, and nothing looked familiar among the ruins to orient himself in this forbidding place. "How are we even going to get back to Felicia and Toriel? I don't suppose Botan gave you a map when I wasn't looking?"

Yukari shook her head, but there was a faint smile on her dirt-smeared face all the same. "Guess we'll just have to start walking until something looks familiar," then she quietly added, "And then we can go home where there's no more mummies who want to turn us into more mummies."

Bloodstone chuckled a little. "Yeah, just crazy zombie music teachers with magic guitars." Yukari made an "eek" sound and hid her face behind her arms, then started walking down the nearest path without exposing her face again. He walked off behind her, chuckling again. "So now I'm joking with a kid in Hell. **There's** something I never thought I'd be able to say about my high school years."

"What **did** you think you'd be able to say about high school?" Yukari asked him suddenly.

"Oh, hell, I don't know. I guess that somebody on my floor would sneak in some booze and I'd end up telling embarrassing stories about how my sisters threatened to cry unless I played 'wedding' with them."

The witch made a "hmmm" noise. "Your little sisters are pretty cute."

But Bloodstone grunted in annoyance. "You know, that was gross enough when Kurumu asked me if I thought my **cousin** was cute, even if Laura **is** my age."

Yukari giggled. "How's she doing? Laura, right?"

He thought about how to answer, since he hadn't heard much of anything from Laura lately except about the graffiti of "BEWARE THE MAN WHO SPEAKS IN HANDS" on the back wall of her school. And he didn't especially want to think about **that** if he could help it either. "Pretty good, I guess. She's going out with this huge basketball player now, she said."

"Huge basketball player, huh? Oh, so you're into **that** kind of thing," Yukari teased.

Bloodstone was about to protest when he spotted something moving against the sky. For a second he thought it was one of the chained souls, but then realized it wasn't glowing. It was pumping long, tattered wings to propel itself through the air.

And it was coming straight at them.

Its frayed old wings were those of a bat, and around its mouth was a set of vicious steel jaws. Its skin was graying and covered in withered purple veins, but there was no mistaking it: this creature was a vampire. An ancient, degenerate vampire, but it looked like they had another fight on their hands already.

"Get ready, Yukari," Bloodstone whispered.

"Wait, Nigeki…," she whispered. "Something's wrong."

"Shit, you're right," he just had a chance to say before the airborne vampire let out an ear-piercing cry, and the ground around them shook and then exploded. Pale, rotting hands erupted from the dirt around the path as a gang of zombies dragged themselves into view. Yukari screamed but brandished her wand and sent a wash tub crashing down on the nearest zombie's head.

"Yukari, get ready to combine again!" Bloodstone ordered. But suddenly the flying vampire went diving between Bloodstone and Yukari then pulled back up into the sky, scattering them with the force of the air as it went past them. As Bloodstone looked up the sky was obscured by a gang of moaning zombies.

And from behind a crypt not far away, another zombie in a tattered suit watched the unfolding chaos with a smile on his face. He spun a tattered top hat on the tip of one finger, flipped it back onto place on his head, and melted into the shadows to wait for his chance.

* * *

 **Well, here it finally is. Not super happy with it myself, adapting Atmosfear into a story arc sounded better in my head. Just one chapter to go, though.**


	21. Chapter 21: Thrill Me

**Kamen Rider Bloodstone, Chapter 21 – Thrill Me**

Ordinary vampire teen Nigeki Hitoribo had finally been allowed to leave his family's home after being confined there most of his life, and it seemed getting to be around monsters his own age was finally allowing him to hold back the dark creature fighting for release inside of him.

But eventually his secret was discovered, and to be allowed to stay at Youkai Academy he agreed to act as an agent of the head of the school, looking into dangers to the supernatural world they inhabit.

Most recently he'd been drafted into helping solve an emergency by a beautiful Shinigami: a group of monsters calling themselves the Harbingers had managed to escape from their captivity in a pocket of Hell, and were bent on capturing a series of magical talismans that would allow them to escape into the world of the living.

Although bedeviled by a strange being calling himself the Gatekeeper, not only has Nigeki managed to capture two of the talismans, or Keystones, but another is in the possession of Simon Belmont, age-old vampire hunter.

As another of the Harbingers, an evil vampire herself, attacks Nigeki, will alliances be formed or broken in this three-way struggle?

* * *

Again the withered vampire came diving at them and Bloodstone braced himself before they crashed into him then suddenly hooked him under the arms and haul him into the air. His blood ran cold as they climbed higher and higher, close enough that he could see the scarred, snarling and demonic faces of the evil souls hanging in chains from the black sky. Even to an inhabitant of the Makai Realm like him they were a fearful sight.

"Give me the Keystones," the attacking vampire purred in a silky feminine voice that didn't belong coming out of the steel-lined jaws of the pale monstrosity in front of him. "Or would you rather feel the bite of Countess Elisabeth Bathory?"

He grabbed her by the neck and squeezed with all his strength then kneed her in the stomach. Her grip on him weakened enough for him to pull free. "Don't flatter yourself," he snarled as he kicked off her chest and went into freefall.

On the ground Yukari screamed as a growling zombie grabbed at her cape and she ripped open the fastening and ducked away, letting him take it. Her wand flashed and a wash tub fell from the sky and clobbered him, knocking him face-first into the dirt.

Bloodstone came crashing down on the thickest part of the zombie horde. He kicked the nearest one so hard there was a sound like a thunderclap as they were sent careening out of sight into the sky. But by attacking one of them he'd gained the attention of the rest. Rotted hands clawed at his thinly-protected arms and legs, and Bloodstone snarled behind his mask as the zombies piled on top of him and brought him down.

In this new form he'd had since he'd gotten that Sacred Gear, his inherent abilities as Bloodstone had been locked away. Even the peak of his physical power was restrained. But maybe there was another answer.

He shrugged his shoulders and flailed his arms, pushing the zombies back long enough for him to snatch one of the Keystones off his belt and focus his energy through it.

A stream of dark power erupted from the Keystone, taking the form of a flock of screeching, biting vampire bats. Inwardly he wished for something less cliché, but results were the important thing. "Yukari! Get ready to fuse—"

But he turned in her direction and for just a second he froze in terror. A pair of zombies had grabbed the young witch and were twisting her arms, while one yanked her wand out of her hands. Yukari gave a scream, and Bloodstone had already closed half the distance between them. He brought back an arm aimed at the nearest zombie's head when all of a sudden something hit him between the shoulders like a wrecking ball and knocked him down, but he went skidding for another fifteen feet from the incredible force of the blow.

He hadn't even had the chance to push himself out of the dirt when someone kicked him onto his back and jagged steel jaws closed violently around the edges of his mask. It was Bathory, the weird bear trap-like attachment around her mouth springing open and then snapping down on his mask even harder and cracking the lenses.

His body started to quiver with a feeling of cold desperation as the decayed vampire snapped down on his mask again and the teeth punched through the armor and totally shattered one lens. Bloodstone pounded at Bathory's ribs with his gauntleted fists and hunks of mask fell off as her jaws held on every inch of the way. Finally her jaws came loose and she stumbled back a few steps, but behind the steel trap she was grinning in evil satisfaction at the ragged hole she'd torn in Bloodstone's mask.

Then in the blink of an eye she'd dashed up to Bloodstone and punched him in the face where she'd ripped his mask away. Yellow and green stars flashed in his eye for a second before he recovered and threw a punch at Bathory's head but she dodged to the side at the last second and his fist went wide. She jumped and kicked him in the stomach, staggering him, then while she was still in the air Bathory raked the edge of her wing across his face sending up a shower of sparks from the force.

Bloodstone reeled but Bathory only kept on coming, pummeling him with blindingly-fast kicks that seemed to pierce right through his armor. He saw another kick coming a second before it connected with his face and tried to duck under it but he was too slow and her heel smashed into him, shattering the other lens on his mask as he was knocked spinning.

The world seemed to blur and somewhere in the distance he could hear Yukari squealing in fear, but if it was because of the zombies holding her or the pummeling he was taking, he didn't know. His vision cleared after a second and he froze as he saw Bathory taking to the air and flying at him like a winged missile. He held his ground, waiting for any sign of what to do next, then dodged to one side only for Bathory to bank and plow into him. Bloodstone went flying and hit the side of a stone crypt, cracking the wall and he was pretty sure he heard something crack in his back too.

For a second his vision totally darkened before slowly focusing again, and in the next instant Bathory flew down and closed her hands around his neck in a stranglehold. He was a vampire, one of the greatest of all monsters, but his abilities had been repressed his entire life. His instincts were sharp but they'd never been honed, since his family had been afraid any violence might awake the darkness in him, the Tear.

Bathory had obviously not suffered the restrictions he had. She tightened her grip on his neck then held on as she jumped up and started kicking and tearing at his chest with the claws on her feet. Bloodstone desperately punched and chopped at Bathory's shoulders to try and knock her off as her onslaught started to shred through his armor. She just grinned at him as his blows didn't seem to faze her at all and then suddenly lunged for his face with her steel jaws again.

…and Bloodstone grabbed her around the throat himself and pulled her forward to deliver a crushing headbutt that echoed across the area and smashed off most of what was left of his mask. Bathory was dazed for just a second and as fast as he could Bloodstone grabbed her by a wrist and ankle and slammed her through the wall of the crypt where she'd had him pinned. The structure creaked in protest and then collapsed on top of Bathory with a roar of crumbling stone.

Bloodstone let himself have a faint sigh of relief as it seemed like his vicious opponent had finally ben taken out. He was turning back to check on Yukari when there was another roar followed by a chorus of angry screams. A wave of pummeling force hit him from behind and knocked him off the ground. Before he even landed tiny fangs and were biting and chewing at his armor; he'd been covered in tiny vampire bats.

He barely felt it when he hit the ground, still covered in biting bats. Every bite took another bit of his strength…if he could just get a second to struggle free and collect himself, he might still get himself together in time to fight back. Bloodstone failed his arms and pushed his way through them for a second and rolled a few times along the ground, finally getting into the clear.

But then suddenly Bathory was standing over him and stomped down on his chest, aiming one of the Keystone talismans at his head, with the other one in her other hand. She must've grabbed them she'd attacked him before…how far behind the rest of his kind **was** he? Bloodstone leaned back to see the two zombies still holding Yukari and one had left long bleeding ribbons on her arm with its jagged fingernails.

"Finish her off," Bathory commanded her undead minions. "And as for you—"

" **Know your place**."

"What?" Bathory asked and turned toward the voice just before a kick snapped up and caught in the jaw, denting the iron trap on her mouth and smashing it closed. Standing there with an impassive look her face was Moka Akashiya.

"A rotted ancient thing like you deserves to be down here, even if you are a vampire," she declared. Bathory lunged at her but Moka was ready and a ferocious scissor kick to the jaw sent Bathory tumbling and the Keystones flying from her hands. She turned to Yukari next, then dashed over to the zombies holding Yukari with incredible speed and sent their head flying into the distance with a pair of blindingly fast kicks. "Find a safe place to wait this out. And make sure there's no more zombies around there first," she ordered the young witch, and with a silent nod Yukari scurried out of sight.

Then she stood over Bloodstone, not bothering to help him up."You make our **entire species** look weak," she said, the words oozing out of her mouth dripping with scorn. "Look at you. Even with the power that jewel gives you, you're a total wreck. That armor's almost gone."

She turned and looked over her should at Bathory who'd just gotten up and was glaring death at her. Moka's response was a small, cocky smirk. "Let me **show** you how a vampire's supposed to be."

* * *

"I know I say it all the time, but kids shouldn't be involved in things like this," Felicia sighed in frustration as she finished another walk around the portal to make sure nothing was sneaking up on this.

Toriel said nothing, continuing to read her book in the light of a fireball she'd conjured that floated in the air above her head, making her fur take on a strange yellow hue in its flickering light. Felicia scowled. "Didn't hear you me?" she asked grumpily.

"I heard you," Toriel replied without looking up. "And a year ago I suppose I would've automatically agreed with you. But a child made it through the underground past a whole civilization of monsters who wanted her dead so she could return to the surface. In the end that child set them all free without hurting a soul."

Felicia frowned. "So you're saying you're okay with this?"

"My, people love to jump to conclusions, don't they?" Toriel said and snapped her book shut. "Of course I don't think children should be soldiers in a perfect world…Felicia, wasn't it?" The catwoman nodded, a grim look on her face, and Toriel went on. "But they're going to be the ones running the world someday. We can't shelter them forever."

Again Felicia glared. "I'm not saying **forever** , but these aren't even old enough **drive** …" She stopped and lightly jerked her head to one side.

To her immense relief, Toriel didn't reply with words. Instead she started casting surreptitious glances around through the decayed buildings around them while the fireball danced unobtrusively above her head. "I wasn't aware cars were the measure of being in charge of one's future," she murmured.

"It is for most kids back where I'm from," Felicia replied, slowly twisting an ear toward what sounded like the faintest sound of a footstep on broken stone.

"How unfortunate for them," Toriel answered. "But I suppose people feeling they need to express themselves through shows of strength is a common belief."

"You think owning a car is a show of strength?"

Toriel shrugged. "Isn't it? It's showing their peers they have capabilities that their peers might not, and keeps them from feeling they need to depend on someone else, which makes them look weak."

Felicia looked at her, squinting in mild confusion. "This is about the last thing I expected to be talking about in a place like this."

"And I thought I'd be dead before I ended up in Hell. It seems we're all having surprises today." Suddenly Toriel spotted a pair of glowing points of light like hot coals floating in a narrow path between two buildings. Before they could move a pulse of energy seemed to hit them like a wave, then everything around them seemed to turn green and start and crack open revealing countless more burning, staring eyes. Felicia gasped and went into a fighting crouch.

But Toriel narrowed her eyes and whipped around toward the alley before a cascade of tiny fireballs shot from her fingertips. A cry of pain went up and a stooped woman with a beak-like nose sticking out of her hideous face limped into sight, and pointed a curled black fingernail at Toriel, who replied with a faint smile.

The witch screeched, "How could you have seen through that? Who are you?"

"I am Toriel, keeper of the ruins…no, I mean, I'm a teacher, and I'm not about to let someone like you go free from here, Harbinger."

The witch said nothing, and neither did Felicia as she shook off the illusion Toriel had been able to see through and dropped to all fours. "Your move," Toriel said warningly.

"I am Anne de Chantraine, witch of legend. That was the merest sample of my power," the witch said quietly. "Let me pass through that gate with you, and there's so much magic I can share…You could be rulers even among monsters."

"I've been a ruler," Toriel replied. "I'm done with it."

"I don't want anything you're offering," Felicia growled.

The witch hissed in anger, then gasped in surprise as a barrage of Toriel's fireballs came at her.

* * *

Bathory hissed and snarled, waving her hands at the sides of the path as if trying to summon another group of zombies, but the steel frame around her jaws had been jammed shut by Moka's first attack and nothing happened.

She dashed at Moka with wings spread wide, but Moka ran straight at her and smashed her knee into the ancient vampire's jaw. While she was still in the air Moka went into a spin-kick and her foot shot like a streak of light into Bathory's shoulder. Bathory went flying from the force of the blow and she'd gone twenty feet already before a sound like thunder ripped through the air, the sound of Moka's awesome blow catching up.

With a crash Bathory hit the ground and a cloud of dust went up from where she landed and clutched her wings around herself as she rolled across the broke ground. She grabbed a tombstone on the side of the path and struggled to her feet. Moka charged down the path and was starting into another kick when Bathory suddenly darted around her, leaned back and braced herself on top of the tombstone with her hands and started slashing at Moka's unarmored side with her taloned feet. Moka gritted her teeth but jumped, lunging for Bathory's throat and grabbing it in an iron grip. She slammed Bathory's head against the ground a few times before managing to get her feet underneath her, spin around and hurl Bathory away like a hammer in track and field.

The evil vampire spun over and over through the air as she came down in a long arc. Before she disappeared into the tangle of broken buildings and crypts her wings flared out. She came flying back and went into a dive at Moka, who jumped and launched a flying kick but Bathory suddenly went into a spin and battered Moka again and again with her wings. Moka started to fall but as Bathory went flying by for another pass, Moka's arm whipped out and grabbed the other vampire by the ankle. Bathory gave a cry of surprise and Moka dragged her feet on the ground to slow the two of them down and Bathory gave off a squawk of rage before she phit the ground.

Immediately Moka jumped on her and the pair of vampires were exchanging punches and chops so hard they knocked Bloodstone an inch off the ground with every impact. Finally Moka rolled off and kicked Bathory into the air before going into a spinning kick that connected with a crack that made Bloodstone look away.

Bathory went spinning away out of sight. There was a crash and crumbling of stone somewhere in the distance, and Bloodstone almost thought he could hear the yowl of a cat in the middle of it all. He decided he'd rather not know what had made that noise as he walked over to where Moka stood silently. "Not bad," he said evenly, trying not to sound too easily impressed.

She whipped away from him with a dismissive "tch," her ice-white hair forming a mesmerizing ribbon in the air for a second. "I'm showing you what a proper vampire can do because you have no idea. Don't try and tell me how I'm doing."

"Fine, I'll tell you: you're all idiots!" a sharp, cackling voice called out. Standing up the path from them was a grinning zombie in a battered top hat and suit.

And he had a Keystone in each hand. The two Bathory had grabbed off Bloodstone when she'd attacked.

"Hand those over," Bloodstone demanded.

The zombie sneered. "You could barely handle a dried up old bat like Elizabeth Bathory, you think you can give the god of death any trouble?" Bloodstone took a step and clenched his fists, but the zombie let out a high sniggering laugh and Bloodstone stopped. Suddenly the zombie's decayed features and arrogant smile, combined with his laugh...could it be? "The Gatekeeper?"

He got no answer. The zombie deftly plunged one Keystone into his pocket but held the other out toward them and a blast of painful music ripped from it, scattering Bloodstone and Moka. "See you on the other side!" the zombie called as the haze from his attack cleared and he was already cresting a hill and out of sight.

Moka elbowed Bloodstone in the side and scowled. "What's wrong with you?! You were going to attack and then you just stopped!" she yelled at him

"Didn't you see it?" he replied. "The way he looked, the way he sounded, he was just like that Gatekeeper. And I don't need to piss him off and be sent back to that Black Hole of his."

"Then what **are** you going to do?" Moka demanded. "He's got those stones and he's getting away." Without waiting for an answer she ran off down the path after the zombie.

Yukari emerged from the shadows with a worried look on her face. "Does Moka hate us?" she asked quietly. Bloodstone patted her slowly on the shoulder.

"Well, she hates **me** , but I don't think I can really be the kind of vampire she thinks we should be. And that's not the Moka you go to your club with…" Bloodstone replied.

"Which one's the real one, then?" Yukari asked with hesitation. "That one scares me…"

Bloodstone clutched the Rosario again. "Let's go find her and help her with that zombie. Otherwise nobody's going to be going to their club anymore."

* * *

A wave of supernatural force flew from Anne de Chantraine's warped black fingers down the road, turning the ground into a mess of clay. A wave of fire jumped from Toriel's fingers and formed a line on the ground in front of her, then she pushed forward with the flames hardening the clay into something solid again as she closed in on the old witch.

"Looks like we're not as powerless as you thought," Toriel declared.

"You look like the animals I used to sacrifice to talk to demons!" the witch retorted.

Toriel sighed and just sent a spiral of small fireballs flying through the air at de Chantraine. It had seemed like it might be amusing to trade barbs with their opponent besides helping with Felicia's plan, but hearing it coming at her, it just sounded like a bully's sneering insults.

De Chantraine hissed and dashed back along the path, farther and farther away from the shimmering portal that was an easier, a quicker way out of this miserable place than the one she and the other Harbingers had planned. But she had a way past that fire-spewing goat, and grinned a mouth full of crooked teeth as she took out a Keystone from a fold in her dress.

The barrage of fire stopped as Toriel tried to see what her opponent was going to try next when suddenly the witch shot into the air like she'd been grabbed and thrown by some giant invisible hand. She flew over Toriel's head and landed on the other side. With a wicked smirk over her shoulder, de Chantraine went into a limping run for the portal Botan had created.

She stuck out one hand for its shimmering surface, then screamed as a fireball from Toriel exploded against her back. Another came sizzling through the air and she scurried away from the portal just before it hit the ground. Anne de Chantraine raised her twisted hands to the darkened sky. "Come to me, murder of scavengers! Pick clean the bones of his unclean beast!" she called.

Toriel narrowed her eyes and was about to summon her power again when she heard the fluttering of hundreds of wings in the air and in another second she was surrounded by squawking, pecking crows.

The goat-monster cried out and tried to spray fire through the air to disperse them, but even as the fire jumped from her furred fingers embers were pushed back onto Toriel because the attacking birds were right on top of her. A dozen small fires erupted on her dress and she screamed as she dropped to the ground and rolled back and forth across the dirt trying to put them out, and the whole time the crows kept close, pecking at her furiously and ignoring the flames spreading across some of their own feathers.

While she was distracted, Anne de Chantraine pointed the Keystone in her hand at a fork in the road between her and Toriel, and a massive iron gate formed, blocking the road. Toriel threw a massive cone of fire and scattered the crows all over her, got to her feet and charged down the road and pounded on the gate. The witch grinned and started to step through the portal.

But without warning a streak of white tackled her out of nowhere and slugged her hard on the side of her face with a massive paw. It was Felicia, who de Chantraine hadn't even noticed slip away. "How did you…" she croaked in disbelief.

"I snuck around the road behind one of those buildings while you had all your attention focused on Toriel. She's really good at holding people's attention, turns out."

There was an oddly pleased-sounding "Hmph!" from the other side of the gate de Chantraine created.

"Hand over those Keystones," Felicia demanded.

De Chantraine laughed in her face. "And what **possible** reason have I got to cooperate with **you** , worm? I'm already in Hell! What more can you do to me?"

Felicia arched an eyebrow. "I guess I could let that guy pick your pocket."

"What?!" A disembodied arm was indeed grabbing one of the Keystones out of the waist of her skirt and then went rocketing backward through the air to attach to the shoulder a zombie in a battered suit and top hat, who grinned at her while holding her other Keystone in his other hand. "SAMEDI! I knew you were just in this for yourself!" de Chantraine screamed.

"Too bad they were faster than you!" he crowed. Toriel started running down another road in his direction but Samedi just smirked and held up one Keystone over his head, then flew away out of sight, snatched away by its power.

"Where's he going…?" Felicia wondered, worry in her voice.

"The Well of Fears," de Chantraine growled, and Felicia gave her a probing look.

* * *

The light of the Keystone in his rotting hand faded and Baron Samedi came to a gentle stop on a road of broken flagstones. It hadn't quite gotten him where he'd wanted to go, but he couldn't achieve his goal there yet. It wouldn't be long, though…

The zombie pocketed his magic talisman and walked down the road toward a hill in the distance. Even at that distance he could see a small black dome rising out of the ground, the object of his entire operation. The power sealed there would make him unstoppable, if he only he had what he needed to unlock it.

He kept up his casual walk as he spotted the figures approaching out of the darkness on both of his sides. That was right, let them think they'd caught him by surprise. It would be even sweeter when they realized the truth.

"Another Harbinger?" Bloodstone whispered. "Do we attack?"

"Not after how useful you were last time," Moka said dismissively, then looked down at Yukari suddenly. "Hey kid, want to show the big scary vampire boy how much butt you can kick?"

Yukari swallowed. "Um…yes?" she replied, casting an uncertain glance up at Bloodstone, who looked back at her through his nearly shattered mask. She gripped her wand. "Let's go."

"I'll bet you're a lot more help than **he** is," Moka smiled and charged out of the darkness with Yukari stumbling out behind her. Bloodstone started to follow but Moka looked over her shoulder and froze him to the spot with her fiery eyes. "Hold it right there, zombie!" she snapped.

"Yes, stop right there," said another voice as an armored figured who stepped into sight from the other side of the road. It was Kamen Rider Revenant.

Baron Samedi jumped back in melodramatic terror. "Oh no! I've been cornered! Which of you gets to be the one to chain me up again?"

"Don't toy with me, Harbinger," Revenant growled and took a menacing step closer to him. "You're nothing compared to Dracula, let me assure you."

"Not yet!" Baron Samedi said with a smirk. Revenant reared back his arm to crack his whip, Yukari leveled her wand and Moka went into an offensive stance, but Baron Samedi just tipped his hat off his head, exposing a moldy exposed brain. Yukari gagged and Samedi giggled at her reaction as he turned the hat upside down and something dropped into his hand.

Another Keystone. The first one he'd been given by that guy in the mask. The Keystone had inspired his entire scheme with the other Harbingers. The one he'd been saving as an ace in the hole

Moka was about to lunge at him when Samedi exclaimed, "I declare that space **occupied!** "

All at once the three of them were encased in a softly glowing cube of light. Moka threw herself against the side again and again but just bounced off despite her awesome strength. "What would be fair?" Baron Samedi mused. "I know! If all three of you manage to roll twelves in a row, you can go free!"

"What?" Moka demanded. A second later her answer came when a pair of dice suddenly dropped from the top of the cube and landed at her feet.

"And while you're busy with my little game, I'll just take this," Samedi said as he reached through the side of the cube helped himself to the Keystone on Revenant's belt, with Revenant's arm passing right through Samedi's as he tried to stop the thieving zombie. "See you on doomsday, kids! It'll be here sooner than you think!" Samedi laughed in victory than ran away down the road.

Bloodstone charged out and hammered on the side of the cube with his fist but a dull boom was the only thing he produced. "Not us," Revenant interrupted him. "Stop that zombie, he's the key to all this!" The armored vampire looked over at all of them. Yukari looked away, probably terrified at what might happen next, and Moka met his eyes for a second, narrowed them disdainfully then looked away. Bloodstone clenched his fists and ran down the road after Samedi.

Yukari picked up the dice off the ground and absently tossed them in her hand a few times. "Guess I'll go first…"

* * *

Running at a speed no-one would've ever expected from a zombie Baron Samedi reached the dome of black stone sticking out of the ground at the top of the hill. If he'd still been alive his lungs would've been burning from his sprint, but his joints didn't even ache anymore, and he went up to the dome and placed a Keystone in a notch in the side.

As Bloodstone came charging up Baron Samedi was placing the sixth and final Keystone into its groove on the stone dome. A wicked smile formed on his dry purple lips. "Hey, I didn't really expect an audience this time, but what's a show without a crowd! You can have a front row seat for the end of the world, kiddo!"

"I bet you aren't much without those rocks of yours," Bloodstone retorted, ignoring the zombie's glib remarks.

"And I bet you ain't much without that fancy belt of **yours** , kid!" Samedi sneered. "But then, you probably ain't much **with** it either!"

Bloodstone scowled and jumped at him but as if he could see the attack coming from a mile away Samedi ducked under it then spun back to his feet and danced to the other side of the stone dome. "Looks like I was right! Don't mess with me kid, the Baron sees everything!"

The vampire got up and was about to charge Baron Samedi again when the ground started to tremble. The top of the dome split into six sections that slid into the recesses of the dome.

Inside was a rolling cloud of…energy was the only thing Bloodstone could think of to describe it. Now that it was free it surged up into a giant mushroom cloud, filling the sky with white light for a second.

Then part of the cloud extended out like a spike straight at Bloodstone, then stopped, hovering inches away from his shattered mask. He tried to jump back and get some distance between, but whatever power was gathered inside seemed to anchor his feet to the ground.

And then he saw it.

A city against a poisoned red sky, skyscrapers crumbling and falling against each other, crushing anything inside or underneath them. Winged shapes flew through the skies throwing weapons or blasts to topple another building or stop the pathetic interference of some defender of the city below.

Then he saw something else, barren ground littered with the remains of humans and monsters alike. The view shifted again, to the ground splitting open and cockroaches the size of cows, crawling out of the depths to make the world their own.

Far in the distance of this horror landscape he could then see a scrawny American man with a mop of brown hair holding up a video game with a symbol Bloodstone could just barely make out but what looked like "VIII," then collapsing on his knees with a cry of despair escaping his lips.

Then he saw Baron Samedi in an old, battered coffin buried deep underground. What looked like panic gripped his weathered face as he banged and clawed on the roof trying to get it to open, but he knew it was useless. Still he cried out and banged on the lid of the coffin for help that couldn't hear him, again and again…again and again…again and again…

And he knew what this was. It was fear. A concentration of raw, soul-crushing terror. This was what Samedi's plan had been to gather the Keystones and getting the other Harbingers to help him had been building up to. This was the power he was going to use to escape, and the power he was going to use to commit whatever evil he wanted once he was free.

"Pretty neat, eh?" Baron Samedi crowed. "They said it wasn't real, or it was in some other part of the jail for the damned…but here it is! The Well of Fears! Who can stand up to **that**? NO-ONE!"

Bloodstone didn't answer. Instead he was whispering, "All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust…"

* * *

Even from almost a mile away, Felicia and Toriel could see the power surging out of the Well of Fears. The catwoman felt a prickle of unease run down her spine but shook it off. "I don't know about this…" she murmured regardless.

"I thought you fought a cosmic demigod once," Toriel reminded her.

"I had help then. A lot of help," Felicia said, and for a second a longing look settled in her eyes. "Jon was there…"

"We better keep going," Toriel gently reminded her. "I have a feeling those kids are close to whatever's going on. Somehow kids like that always are."

Felicia nodded and started sprinting across the stone path on all fours and it was all Toriel could do to try and keep behind her. "That something you know from experience, huh?" Felicia called back over her shoulder.

"Yes!" Toriel panted. "Lots of children came through the underground while I was still there! All of them found their way to the most dangerous places…but only one made it out alive!"

That remark made Felicia blanche and she ran even harder, not noticing as Toriel fell behind and finally had to stop to catch her breath. Toriel was proud that her magic proved to be as powerful as ever, but it seemed like life in the ruins had left her softer than she'd realized.

As she sucked in air Toriel spotted a dark shape flying down the road behind her and two more on the ground. She raised her hands and prepared to defend herself until they came closer, and she recognized a girl with a bright blue ponytail and the oar she was sitting on. Botan was finally back.

"Oh, **there** you are," Toriel said through panting breaths. "And those two are with you, I presume?"

"They're my pros," Botan replied proudly.

"I assume **she's** not the one you brought us here to kill, then," said one of them bluntly, a short human man with a shock of spiky black hair that spread out like a fan atop his head, decorated with a crooked white streak running up and over the front of it.

Botan gave him a weary look like she'd heard this kind of remark from him many times in the past. "No, Hiei. What we're looking for is over **there…** "

* * *

Baron Samedi gazed into the cloud of pure, primal **fear** , but did it with a manic grin on his face. In the middle of all the horrified faces he could see one in particular that belonged to the young vampire he was facing. Nigeki Hitoribo, drowning in an ocean of black water. Evil grinning faces formed inside it and small waves that looked like hands formed out of the darkness and tried to push him under.

Then the cloud surged upward and the vision was gone. Samedi watched as it spread itself wider across the top and of the area, and a throbbing glow formed in the middle as the power concentrated itself. Soon there would be enough power there to even break out of a prison like this…and after that there'd be enough power for him to be a god in his new world. A true god, not just a god whose name he borrowed.

Right then Felicia slipped into the shadow of a tombstone at the edge of the clearing and tried to figure out what was going on. Baron Samedi was just watching the cloud gathering overhead, but so was Bloodstone, which didn't seem right at all. And if he wasn't attacking the dangerous zombie…she had a feeling she knew what that meant.

She ducked from shadow to shadow until she was close enough to hear the thing htat confirmed her fears: "All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust…"

After a second she was sure Baron Samedi was more focused on the cloud than on Bloodstone, and she skittered over to him and hid in the shadow of the Well of Fears. "Come on kid, don't do this to me," she sighed. "I never been on a babysitting job before. If you go and get turned into a demon on me I'll get a bad rep and nobody'll give me another gig."

"All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust…" Felicia pinched her nose and sighed again, and reached through the hole in Bloodstone's mask and gave **him** a pinch on his nose, but all he did was repeat once again, "All is ruin, all is waste, all will fall to the ground and crumble to dust…" A black shell was crawling over his neck and starting to spread to his chin.

"Oh god, what'd we do last time? The girls let you drink their blood so you could transform and shake it off…but you're already transformed now, and your transformation's different now…what do I do?" Felicia grabbed Bloodstone by the head and yanked his eyes away from the cloud which only made him fall face-first into the dirt.

After a second, though, he turned his head to the side and made contact with his exposed eye, the fear's hold over him seemingly broken by losing his contact with it. "Miss Bast?" he asked, the black shell still crawling up over his chin.

"You can just call me Felicia, kid. Or Mistress, I guess, if we're going to do this whole student-teacher thing right," she said, hoping it would break up the fear and tension of the rest of the night up to that point. It seemed to be working as he smirked up at her weakly. "Look, kid, some apocalyptic shit's about to go down. Can you help me take that guy down?"

"I don't think so," Nigeki replied. He scraped at the black shell on his neck but it didn't move. "If I look at that thing again I'll probably go crazy and attack you too."

"HEY! Talking to yourself, dirtbag?!" cackled a voice, and Baron Samedi walked around the edge of the Well to see them hiding behind it. "Oooh! I like your girlfriend, kid! Maybe I'll keep her! She can be my first queen!"

Felicia shook Bloodstone furiously and tried to pull him to his feet. "Look, I know I said before you shouldn't be mixed up in this kind of thing at your age, but I take it back!" she cried. "We've gotta destroy this thing and I don't think I'm strong enough by myself! Get up, kid! Let's kick some ass!"

Bloodstone stopped clawing at the Tear shell forming on his face. He'd only heard Felicia talking about how much she didn't agree with having someone as young as him fighting. But finally fighting against his problems was the only thing that had gotten him somewhere in keeping the Tear inside him from taking him over. And if he got to fight by her side for real…she'd already helped save the world, think of what he'd learn, what he could use to fight his own inner demons from her example. "I will," he said. "Let's fight."

"Oooh! I'm so scared!" Baron Samedi laughed.

He should've been. " **Pride Heart! Synch!** "

* * *

Power blazed from the Joining Nexus running through Bloodstone's body, even outshining the light from the cloud of fear for a second before it retreated back into his body, reformed by the fusion.

Baron Samedi's superior smirk faded for a second as he saw that they'd become. Bloodstone was leaning forward now with a feline cant to his back and arms, like gathering a savage power in his body and waiting for just the moment to unleash it to devastate his enemy. A silver tail emerged from his back and a ball of electric fire glowed at the end, matching the sparks cracking at the end of the cables hanging down from the back of his mask now like a mass of whips. His mask had been repaired by the power of his fusion and now the smooth mouthplate had formed into a pair of jaws lined with steel fangs, and lodged in the armor over his heart was a blue crystal ball with three curved slash marks in a line inside of it.

"Oh no!" Baron Samedi laughed. "Please…don't cough up a hairball at me!"

Bloodstone sprang, seeming to disappear from where he'd been and to the air above Baron Samedi. His fist flashed out and smashed into the zombie's ribs the other cracked against his chin with a speed Samedi never saw coming. The fused hunter raised a fist over his head and brought it down on Samedi, but this time he was ready and spun out of the way then danced around the side of the Well of Fears away from Bloodstone.

The armored vampire's hand went to his belt and unholstered the Hunter's Myriad. The rectangular device reacted to his new form and flipped up from one side, doubling its length, then split it two. One half attached itself to the fingertips of his right hand, red claws five inches long jumping from them. The other attached itself to the front of his right boot and a long blade of blue metal jumped from the end.

"Not bad," Baron Samedi said impassively. "Let me show you some of **my** toys!" He held his arms out to his sides and a tendril of smoke snaked out of the cloud above them and formed itself into a giant gray wolf whose shoulder was as high as Bloodstone's head, its lips pulled back angrily exposing its sharp teeth as puffs of black smoke . Then the wolf started to spread as if doubling itself and then forming into a towering praying mantis that seemed to be made of shards of blue, red and purple glass.

Then with no warning the mantis swung one giant gleaming arm at Bloodstone's head, but he crouched and pounced, crashing into the mantis's chest claws extended and spraying tiny bits of the glass making up its body all over the ground. It tried to bring its arms together in front of it to crush him but Bloodstone kicked his bladed foot into its chest and vaulted backwards, dragging his foot up and slicing a deep furrow into the mantis's before his foot came free from the top and he flipped the air away from it.

The wolf darted over and waited for Bloodstone to land with its mouth wide open for him, smoke dripping out from between its teeth. " **Rolling Slice!** " announced Bloodstone's belt as he tucked his legs in against him and went into a backwards somersault. The blade on his boot cut into the wolf over and over as he spun, getting a pained yelp out of the wolf until Bloodstone touched the ground again. He immediately bolted out of the way as the wolf snapped its jaws at him, missing by seconds.

His speed was blinding in this form as he demonstrated running a circle around the giant glass mantis, it clumsily turning repeatedly to try and face him so it could line up an attack. The wolf came charging up and Bloodstone jumped and clawed the side of its face, distracting it with pain just long enough for the mantis's bladed arm to sink into its back instead of Bloodstone's. The wolf howled in agony then turned and bite into the arm of the glass mantis, who slashed at its other side to try and shake the angry animal off.

Bloodstone growled and snapped his steel fangs together. Both of his halves were predators by their nature, and couldn't be satisfied watching their enemies fight among themselves. Bloodstone jumped at the wolf's back, " **Delta Blade!** " coming from his belt. He lashed out with a straight upward kick that slashed up the wolf's back then as he came down held out his claws and raked them across the wolf's back.

Samedi's creations untangled themselves from their attack on each other and turned to face Bloodstone again. The wolf zigzagged from side to side as it came at Bloodstone, coming at him in short jumps, probably to keep him guessing where it would attack from. Suddenly it pounced, jaws open wide and smoke spewing from his maw.

But Bloodstone's predatory instincts were sharper than ever and he jumped straight at the wolf as it made its move. " **Tumble Bat!** " He grabbed its shoulders with all his monstrous strength, claws digging into its flesh and black smoke flowing from it now too. Bloodstone pushed forward and the wolf landed on its back but they rolled again, Bloodstone bracing his legs on the wolf's belly and as he hit the ground he kicked off, flipping the wolf into the air. It slammed into the ground with incredible force, and with a *POP* black smoke erupted out of its wounds, leaving nothing but a deflated skin.

But as soon as Bloodstone was starting to savor the kill his back exploded with pain and a fountain of sparks that sent him flying through the air before he collected himself and landed in a somersault. The glass mantis scuttled after him, slashing at Bloodstone with its giant bladed arms but he dodged from side to side just a second ahead of it until his keen eyes spotted the shards of glass he'd hacked off it with his attacks before…

Suddenly he broke away and went into a slide. " **Sand Smash!** " He kicked suddenly and violently sent a storm of jagged glass flying into the mantis, chipping off even more and after a second, an opening formed in its body that he could see something throbbing inside. Something like a nice juicy heart…

" **Panic Claw!** " His clawed gauntlet flashed with energy as he jumped at the bug's torso. It swiped its bladed arms at him but Bloodstone growled and reached out with his teeth sank them into the closer one then wrenched it off. He landed on the mantis and slammed his bladed boot into it to anchor himself then slashed at the opening exposing its heart. Huge flakes of glass flew off and peppered his armor. The mantis screamed in pain but screamed even louder as Bloodstone swung again and smashed its heart to pieces. It exploded into a million fragments, a few lodging themselves in Bloodstone's armor.

He didn't care, turning to face Baron Samedi now his creations were out of the way. But the zombie only grinned. "Not bad," he said, but then held his hands above his head. Tendrils of the cloud flowed down into him, through his fingertips, his eyes, his mouth…and he turned an evil grin on the fused hunter. "Let's dance!" he said, then pointed one finger at Bloodstone and a blast of screaming skulls rushed at him.

* * *

"Did you guys feels that?"

"What?" asked the one called Hiei with cool sarcasm. "That immense burst of supernatural power just now? A blind man would've noticed it."

"Oh no," Toriel whispered. She ran ahead of the group, going as fast as her fuzzy feet would take her. She dashed over another hill, down the other side and finally the Well of Fears was in sight.

She could see Bloodstone dodging back and forth as Baron Samedi floated off the ground and fired blasts of glowing skulls, as big as he was, at the armored vampire. Bloodstone managed to dodge a few, but time seemed to slow down as Samedi suddenly whipped around and fired another skull-blast from both hands at once, hitting the ground where Bloodstone was just landing. A huge explosion went up and Bloodstone went flying, his body flickering, and when he hit the ground Felicia rolled away from him and didn't get up.

"Nice warmup," Samedi said as he jerked his neck to one side and gave it a good crack. "Wonder how many others are going to manage that many dodges before they get blown away."

"Hey, handsome!" called a voice over his shoulder. He looked back and saw the Gatekeeper's smirking face hovering there. "You've got trouble!"

"You going to drop me in the 'bleggol'? You can't! Now **I've** got the power!" Baron Samedi grunted in surprise more than pain as a fireball exploded against his back.

The Gatekeeper giggled. "Oh, I know I can't. But you ain't a god **yet**. This'll teach you to steal my face!" Then he disappeared, his sniggering laugh hanging in the air.

Samedi growled. "After I have this power figured out, I'm coming after you first, Gatekeeper," he mumbled, then whirled to face his new opponents. Toriel stood there warming up another attack but behind her stood two human men, or so they looked at first. One was a dark-haired boy maybe a few years older than the kids who'd been getting into fights with the other Harbingers, but a bit more muscular and with a rougher look, like he'd actually been in fights and learned a couple things about what he was doing.

The other was shorter with wild spiky hair and an impassive look on his face. A short sword hung from his belt in the back. "Is this it?" he asked as he looked at Baron Samedi, his tone flat and unimpressed.

"And just who are you idiots supposed to be?" Samedi asked, sounding just as unimpressed.

The taller boy stepped forward, arms akimbo, and announced, "Yusuke Urameshi, Spirit Detective—"

"Oh," Baron Samedi cut in. "That's what Spirit Detectives look like now, eh? What do you want?"

Yusukue recoiled and took a second to collect himself before he continued. "If you seal that well up again, maybe we can argue for a lighter sentence when the report for all this comes down."

"But you won't do that, so we should probably just go to the end where we blast you," Hiei added unemotionally.

"You're obviously the smart one," Baron Samedi observed. Then he suddenly fired off a cloud of snapping skulls and dragon heads hissing lightning. His expression completely unmoved, Hiei easily jumped right over it and then Baron Samedi's head, turned to face him again in midair and land with only a slight bend of his knees.

Saying nothing, Hiei whipped his shirt off and moved a hand to the hilt of his sword. A mass of screaming faces of the damned formed from Baron Samedi's rotted fingers but in a single second silver sparks seemed to erupt from all over it and Hiei was sheathing his sword even though the others never saw him draw it. The cloud of faces let out a last pitiful scream and then exploded into chunks of white that blew away a second later.

"Try again, zombie," Hiei said as emotionless as ever.

"Oh, I think I will," Baron Samedi replied, then suddenly whipped around to face Yusuke and the ground underneath him erupted with black iron chains that tried to throw themselves at his arms and neck. This wasn't the first trap he'd found himself in and Yusuke threw himself forward, rolled twice and came out in a crouch with his fingertip pointed at Baron Samedi like a gun.

Toriel gaped at him and had just about managed to find her voice to ask what he thought he was doing. Then he jerked back his hand and a glowing bullet actually shot from the tip and slammed into Baron Samedi's head, knocking him spinning head over heels. Yusuke fired again but Samedi glowed brighter and froze himself upright before easily swatting Yusuke's shot up into the sky.

"Try that again, **spirit detective** ," Samedi challenged and then pointed to his forehead. "Right here!"

For a second Yusuke brought his finger up and aimed it at Samedi, but then suddenly he jumped, rolled and squeezed off two shots at the zombie's side instead. Toriel threw a fireball as big as her head at Samedi when he turned toward Yusuke's bullets and it exploded into cinders but every single shot made a direct hit and left no mark on Samedi at all. Hiei darted up, nothing but a blur of motion, and raked the tip of his katana across Samedi's body over and over, just as fast.

Nothing.

"The well! Destroy the well!" Yusuke yelled and fired at it instead, Toriel sending a barrage of fireballs after it. They were about to hit the side when suddenly they slowed down, lifted higher and then over the edge of the well.

"You can't kill **fear** , idiots!" Samedi crowed. Withered hands jumped out of the ground and grabbed Toriel and Yusuke by their legs, pulling them down. Hiei jumped out of the way and straight at the floating zombie but Samedi just smirked and an invisible force grabbed the tip of his katana and yanked it up into the air away from Samedi's throat where it'd been aimed. He dangled in the air, staring Baron Samedi in the face, but suddenly whipped away his headband revealing another eye in his forehead. It flickered with power and for a second Baron Samedi seemed mesmerized.

But then the zombie jerked his head to the side and Hiei went flying to slam into the side of the Well of Fears. As soon as he slid off and touched the ground a slew of rotten arms broke through the dirt and pinned him. Hiei gritted his teeth and pulled only to be dragged down again.

Was the power of Fear even greater than the seasoned Spirit Detectives?

* * *

"What did you get?"

"You don't want to know," Revenant answered.

"If I didn't want to know, I wouldn't ask," snapped Moka.

"Five, all right? Five."

Moka hissed in frustration and punched the wall of the cube holding them prisoner, not even making a noise for all her strength. "This is pointless! We could be here for years doing this, trying to get out."

Yukari looked up at Moka, fear twisting her stomach. For a long time she'd hoped to be as strong as the vampiric beauty, but now she couldn't help but worry that Moka might just get mad enough to take out her anger on the two of them. Revenant might stand a chance, but her?

She sucked in a breath, tried to remember how she'd overcome her fear when Nigeki had been about to die, but the look of helpless rage in Moka's eyes…

"You could," said a voice outside the cube. "Ooooooooor you could do something incredibly brave and stupid to get out!" It was the Gatekeeper, grinning like a lunatic and giggling to himself as usual.

"Like what?" Revenant asked cautiously.

The Gatekeeper didn't answer right away, though. Instead the far wall of the cube flickered to show an image of the battle the others were having with Baron Samedi. He clapped his hands and icy-looking daggers rained out of the cloud and buried themselves in Bloodstone, Yusuke and Hiei. Yukari gulped.

"Looks like those other maggots you came in with could use a bit of help, eh? If one of you was willing to give up your spirit energy, it could probably break you out of that box," the Gatekeeper grinned again.

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?" Moka demanded.

Revenant placed a restraining hand on her shoulder. "What I think it means is we could escape, if one of us was willing to give up their life. I should be—"

"NO!" Yukari cried, surprising both of them. "You're Simon Belmont, right? Then that means your whip is special, and it can get through the field around that ugly zombie."

"…probably, at least for a little while," Revenant replied.

Yukari gripped her wand as she readied to say what she was about to say. "Then I volunteer. Take my life to break this open."

"You're so brave, little maggot," the Gatekeeper grinned.

"No!" Revenant shouted and tried to thrust himself in between Yukari and the Gatekeeper but it was already too late. Ribbons of energy flowed out of her eyes, piercing the side of the cube. The sound of shattering lass was deafening as cracks raced to every corner and the cube fell to pieces, but only tiny flakes fell on the former prisoners.

Revenant shook his fist up at the Gatekeeper's grinning face. "So help me, you'll pay for this!" he snarled, all his earlier thoughts of being careful not to anger the hooded trickster gone. Yukari crumbled to the ground, unmoving and her skin growing pale. "But for now, there are other lives at stake and a world to save from another creature of evil…"

The Gatekeeper's only reply was his usual snigger.

* * *

Yusuke stared down into the half-buried face of one of the zombies holding him to the ground. He managed to twist his head far enough to see Hiei pinned by a mass of hands sticking out of the ground too. But the third eye in his forehead was glowing and the hands were loosening their grip on him and slowly sliding back into the ground, the strong but lowly undead mesmerized by the psychic power of his eye.

"Hey, Hiei," Yusuke tried to whisper to him. His eyes darted to Baron Samedi who'd floated over into the column of cloudy power right above the Well of Fears, the zombie's eyes shut as he drank in all its power, and Yusuke could feel it blazing even from where he was pinned. Soon Samedi would indeed be powerful enough to break through to any world he wanted.

He had to be stopped.

"What is it, Yusuke?" Hiei asked, sounding almost bored. "You finally ready to help me with a sneak attack on that idiot over there?"

"Yeah. Think you can cut me loose? I'm probably gonna need to conserve my spirit energy."

"Pathetic," Hiei answered, but in the blink of an eye he launched himself in Yusuke's direction and sliced through the zombie hands holding him down with a blindingly fast strike of his katana. Yusuke jumped to his feet and then the two of them scattered before Baron Samedi had the chance to see what they were doing and launch an attack on them both.

But he didn't launch an attack on them. Instead he waved his hands and a swarm of cockroaches the size of dogs started to warm from a patch of light in front of them and chased after Yusuke and Hiei as the pair of fighters ran the perimeter of the clearing, Yusuke firing off a ghostly bullet at Samedi whenever he could see the zombie's back. They just glanced off, ineffective against his new power.

But while he was distracted Toriel conjured fire in her palms and burned away the zombies holding her down. She swiped a burning hand over the ones pinning Bloodstone too and after they retreated into the ground she lightly rolled him onto his back. His armor was charred and flaking off in places after the last attack Baron Samedi had hit him with, but the veins in it were still pumping faintly. "Are you all right, my child?" she asked quietly.

"I can't really move. It hurts," he replied.

Instinctively she reached out and took his hand, lacing her fingers through his supportively. "I'm sure it does. You're very brave to take all of this on," she said, a strange but warm smile forming on her goat-like face.

"AAGGH! They're getting in my PANTS!" someone yelled in the distance.

"What's going on?" Bloodstone asked.

Toriel replied by gently stroking the cheek of his mask, which should've felt strange, he thought, but seemed oddly comforting instead. "Don't worry about them, this is something they do all the time. Do you think you can stand?"

He dragged his hand back until he could lean on it and start to push himself into a sitting position. "I can still fight. We've gotta do something about that guy." Toriel took his arm over her shoulder and helped him get to his feet.

"I suppose once, I might've disagreed with you, child," she sighed. "But now…now I have to agree, at least a little, that you've got the right to fight for your own future."

"You keep calling me 'child'," Bloodstone pointed out

She shrugged lightly and smiled gently. "I guess so. For such a long time the only people I ever saw were children. And Froggit, too...nosey little jerk. I guess it's a routine I've settled into. Shall we go help…child?"

"Yes, we should, mom."

"…what did you call me?"

" **Caprine Heart! Synch!** "

A roar of power filled the area as the Joining Nexus was activated again, and everyone, even Samedi's phantom cockroaches, turned to face the fading light of Bloodstone's transformation.

Spiraling white horns emerged from the top of his mask. He seemed to be standing on a his tiptoes but another glance showed his boots had changed to cloven hooves and his legs now bent backwards like a goat's. The crystal ball in the space over his heard was a soft purple housing the image of an orb with wings and three triangles underneath, two pointing up and the one below pointing down.

"…a goat?" Yusuke asked in confusion.

"Wonder if he'll taste like one!" Baron Samedi sneered and clutched his fist. The ground around them started to shake in a miniature earthquake, flinging the giant ghostly cockroaches everywhere and cracking the ground into giant chunks. Yusuke fell backward as the ground he stood on tilted and a pair of cockroaches came tumbling at him. He fired at the first one, knocking it into a crack, but the other landed right on top of him. He yelped and swatted the huge bug away with his fist.

Hiei was the first combatant to attack Samedi, jumping off the shaking ground and coming at him from the side and sword raised high. It sliced against his undead target but Samedi just smiled as it had no effect on him at all. He held out one hand that suddenly morphed into a mass of tentacles that coiled around Hiei's throat and then wrapped around his arms and yanked them apart, seemingly trying to pull him limb from limb.

Bloodstone pulled the Hunter's Myriad off his belt and the device changed its form again with his new fusion, splitting in two as it had before but this time a fireball formed at the end of each rod like a torch. Jumping again and again from the broken hunks of ground he waited for just the right moment then touched them together and a flaming ray shot from where they met.

The ray struck Baron Samedi but he just grinned and shook his head. "You still don't get it, do you?" he laughed.

But as he laughed Bloodstone aimed at the Well of Fears. Samedi was about to say that was indestructible too, but Bloodstone aimed a precise shot not at the well itself, but one of the indentations where a Keystone was lodged…

The ray blew the talisman out of its setting and into the darkness around them. The Well started grinding noisily as part of the cover slid back into place. "No…NO! Not yet!" Baron Samedi shrieked and threw Hiei at Bloodstone but the armored vampire bounded off the broken hunk of ground, somersaulted in the air and land a kick between Samedi's shoulders. He spun through the air and rebounded off the side of the Well, just as another shot from Bloodstone's weapons knocked another Keystone out of its niche. As he did the earthquake going on around them stopped.

Samedi jumped back, already glowing angrily with power as he prepared to strike back. Then suddenly a voice boomed through the area. " **Banishing Strikes**." Kamen Rider Revenant charged into view, cracking his whip and hitting Samedi in the chest. The glow around him flickered and his angry expression faded.

Revenant's whip cracked again and Samedi tried to create a wall of light, filled with demonic faces to block it, but the weapon cracked through and hit him again, weakening the power surrounding him even more. Another crack of the whip and the power flowing through Samedi faded completely and he fell down with a crash. He scrambled for the Well of Fears.

And suddenly a beautiful but angry girl, long white hair whipping behind her ran past him and knocked a Keystone out of the Well with a kick that made the air seem to shatter break loudly. With a giant rumble the cover of the well ground shut again and after another second, the cloud overhead dispersed leaving just the blackened sky.

Moka was the first to charge at him, throwing a flying kick at his head that Samedi ducked under her foot with surprising agility and ran past her. "You're done for now, zombie," Revenant called, but Samedi just shrugged.

"You've still got to catch me first!" he said and bolted down the road leading out of the clearing where the well was. Suddenly Hiei came plummeting out of the air in front of him, but to all their surprise cast his katana aside. He clutched his hands together and a giant serpentine dragon whipped through the air and slammed into Baron Samedi, carrying up him high into the air before breaking up like smoke.

" **Mother's Wrath!** " exclaimed the Bloodstone itself as its namesake crossed the torches in his hands again and the fireball they formed enlarged until it was the size of his torso, then released its power in a blast that shaped itself into a group of three goat-like creatures formed of fire, snapping their jaws and knocking their horns against each other as they went galloping into the air and seized Baron Samedi. They bit and pummeled him relentlessly with their flaming hooves and horns as they fell. When they hit the ground they exploded in puffs of smoke, and Baron Samedi lay motionless on the cracked earth.

* * *

Everyone stood back as Bloodstone released his armor, spraying the area with thick black and red slime. His body glowed for a second and then Nigeki was standing beside Toriel, a strange half-smile on his face and glint in his eyes as he looked up at her. She blushed through her fur at the look and turned away from him.

Yusuke and Hiei came up on Samedi from opposite sides, bent forward, tensed a little as they looked to see if he was still looking to fight, but his body was starting to fade already from the beating he'd taken. He turned his head to look over at Nigeki, and croaked, "Hey kid, I saw it. Your fear, your big one. You know whatever's inside you, if you slip once it could take you over for good, and you'd never get back out again."

"I saw yours too," Nigeki replied. "You're afraid of being buried alive…or whatever the word is for how you are."

Baron Samedi smiled a pained smile. "Sounds like we've got a lot in common, huh?" But Nigeki never got the chance to answer. In that second Baron Samedi completely disintegrated into black smoke and floated into the sky to resume his imprisonment along with the other souls of the damned that struggled hopelessly in the sky above them.

"Well done, everyone," Botan said with a chipper smile on her face as she walked up to them, paddle slung over her shoulder. "I'm proud to say, mission accomplished!" she said, then made a peace sign with her free hand.

"What about that other Harbinger? The witch?" asked Toriel.

"Oh, I found her tied to a tried…I'm assuming I have you two to thank for that?" Felicia nodded, and Botan went on. "We made sure she ended up back where she belongs," Botan said and pointed up at the sky. "You can see her right…there!" Nigeki and Toriel looked, but couldn't spot anything different any of the thrashing souls where she pointed.

Behind them Yusuke looked over at Hiei with some amazement. "I can't believe you used the Dragon of Darkness on that guy…you really have it under control now?"

"Does it matter?" the other asked. "Are we done here?"

"No, we aren't," Botan answered him, turning slightly stern. "We haven't found out how those so-called Harbingers were able to escape the chains and try their scheme in the first place. Although I suspect I know the answer to that…COME ON OUT, GATEKEEPER! DON'T THINK YOU CAN HIDE FROM ME!"

In response to her yell the hooded face they'd all become accustomed to seeing appeared, his shit-eating grin in place as always.

"It **was** you who let the Harbingers escape, wasn't it?" Botan demanded.

"It was some guy in a mask…came in and told me to unchain them. Nothing ever happens here, thought it might give me something to do."

Botan scowled. "What kind of mask?"

"Who knows?!" the Gatekeeper giggled. "Everyone wears a mask, I see them all! I see the ones they don't see themselves…"

Botan sighed and clutched her forehead. "You're going to be in a **world** of trouble when I report this."

But he just giggled at her again. "Find someone else who'll take this job, maybe **then** I'll be scared!"

Revenant cleared his throat. "If I may, I think we should disperse. Our job here seems done, and you've got another life to worry about yet…"

Moka knitted her brow. "She's still alive?"

"Who's still alive?" Nigeki asked.

"Yes, but not for long in the shape she's in," Revenant said, and then ran off down the path. "Nor will someone else be if I don't hurry!"

Yusuke turned to the group from Youkai Academy and shot them a smile. "Hey, it was great working with you guys! Maybe we'll meet up again sometime."

Nigeki just waved and followed Moka away from the area, not sure how to answer a question like that.

* * *

Her body was cold and her eyes squeezed tight but Yukari just barely managed to reach up with a trembling hand and put her arm around Nigeki's neck. He carried her to the school medical station, which to his relief still had its lights on despite night having settle over Youkai Academy while they were gone. He doubted it was a coincidence.

Yukari didn't make a sound as the nurse on duty put her in a bed, and to Nigeki's alarm her skin had started to turn grey as he'd brought her in from the portal. He'd heard from Moka about what Yukari did to let them escape, and now Yukari was clinging to life, but just barely.

"I wonder what it'll take for her to recover," Nigeki mumbled as they walked back out into the hall.

"That sounds so wrong," Moka said.

He looked back at her but squinted with weariness. "…what does? Do I even want to know?"

"A vampire's nature is to hunt. We don't have the power to heal."

"But I'm not much of a vampire, am I?" Nigeki retorted. "I guess that's it, though…all we can do is wait and see what happens with her. See you later."

Moka cleared her throat and he turned back around to face, glaring a little after how she'd been treating him the rest of the night. "What?"

"Don't you think you should give me that back?"

Nigeki looked at her, annoyed, but then followed his gaze down to her hand and realized he still had her Rosario clutched tightly in his fist. He'd had it in an iron grip since they'd been attacked by the Soul Rangers, not daring to let it get lost without even realizing it was what he'd been doing.

She took it and reattached it to its loop on her choker then shimmered as she reverted to her gentler pink-haired alter ego. After a second of uncomfortable silence she asked, "Will you be all right tonight?"

He nodded slowly and sighed. "Yeah, I think I will. See you tomorrow."

"Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow." Then she turned and walked off, casting a last uncertain look over her shoulder at Nigeki as she went.

* * *

When he got to his room Nigeki just locked the door behind, hung his jacket over the back of his desk chair, took his dose of hypnocil and lay down in bed without bothering to take off the rest of his school uniform.

He was out of energy after everything that happened, even though they'd won. Yukari was barely alive, and the real Moka was scorning him even more than she ever had now.

But the Spirit Detectives had him a little worried. They were people who hunted down monsters, and nominally at least they were on the same side he was, but how did they decide when a monster had crossed the line? The Kamen Riders were supposed to be "allies of justice" or whatever, and he'd never heard about them caring much about what kind of monsters they exploded with their laser kicks.

It was too much to deal with after a day that long. The vampire shut his eyes.

The next thing he knew an electronic buzz went off in his ears and his eyes snapped open, then snapped shut again from the blinding early morning light. Covering his eyelids with one hand and letting out a gasp of painful surprise, he fumbled around on the floor with his other hand reaching for his phone. A second later he dared to open his eyes again he looked at the screen and saw he'd gotten a text.

The picture of a girl with magenta streaks in her hair and a heart-shaped birthmark under her eye swam through his dazed mind looking for a name to attach itself to. Finally he remembered who it was: his American cousin, Laura. Straining his eyes until they adjusted to the light he could just make out her text surrounded by a hot pink bubble.

"HI WE HAVENT TALKED IN 4EVS! HOW RU DOING? R UR FRIENDS MAKING SCHOOL COOL?"

Nigeki couldn't help chuckling a little at how carefree her message sounded. The timing seemed almost suspicious with the dream he'd just had, but he responded. "MY FRIENDS ARE GREAT, BUT TURNS OUT I HAVE A REALLY COMPLICATED RELATIONSHIP WITH ONE."

He was about to set down his phone when immediately he saw the symbol that Laura was already working on a reply. A second later he read, "OOOH YOU LIKE HER! ^_~ 3 3 IS SHE PRETTY? WHATS HER NAME?"

For a second Nigeki thought of trying to deny it, but his childhood experiences told him there was no point. When a girl got a thought like that into her head there was no changing it. His sisters had never let him forget about his "love" for Lilly…

"SHE'S PRETTY, BUT SHE WANTS ME TO COMPETE WITH HER. TO GET BETTER THAN HER AT…," he stopped, not sure what to say. Saying Moka wanted to compete with him at being the crap out of unfriendly monsters seemed like one way to get Laura to stop thinking about his "crush," but he was sure the rest of his family would hear about it somehow. "…JOGGING. SHE'S THE MOST SERIOUS RUNNER I EVER MET."

"BET YOUR GONNA HAVE TO MOVE FAST TO GET ANY KISSES FROM THAT GIRL!"

"YEAH…BUT ENOUGH ABOUT MY DATING SITUATION. WHAT ABOUT YOU? HOW ARE YOU AND THE BOY FROM THE BASKETBALL TEAM DOING? WHAT'S HIS NAME AGAIN?"

"OMG U MEAN CLAUDE! FRIDAY OUR TEAM BEAT GRAVEDALE AND HE GOT ALMOST ALL THE POINTS LET ME SEND YOU MY PICTURES!"

Nigeki set down his phone, feeling better for the moment at least that he wouldn't have to explain to Laura that Moka wanted a combat rival and how far he was from being what she was after. Then again, she couldn't have one if he just didn't unseal her again, right…?

He barely heard the sound of an image being delivered from his phone as someone knocked sharply on the door.

Nigeki gave out a groan he didn't care if the person in the hall heard, especially since it was probably Moka wanting to discuss whether he'd spar with her true self or not. "Can this **wait**?"

"No, child, I'm sorry but it can't," replied a soft voice that wasn't either version of Moka.

When he placed the name, he ran for the door so fast he cracked the window with flakes of the flooring ripped up by his toes, and opened the door so sharply it almost came off the hinges. "HI MRS. DREEMUR!"

Toriel jumped back in surprise at the force of his greeting, but collected herself quickly enough. "Yes, hello. Good afternoon, child. I'm here because I'm told that your academic performance lately has been…well, leaving something to be desired."

"You know the Headmaster's only letting me stay because I have to go on his little missions whenever he asks, right?"

"Oh, I know, and I've also been asked to take you to see him, in regards to that."

Nigeki nodded, supposing he hadn't really been expecting the chance to rest. "Yeah, let's go."

* * *

Nigeki almost jumped when he heard the locks of the heavy double doors coming open. He'd been paying a little too much attention to Toriel as they walked, her shoulders seeming so…fluid, so dynamic as she swayed her arms in rhythm while she led the way to…

….where the hell had they been going? Oh, of course, the Headmaster's office. The place was dimly lit by blue light and the space in front of his desk was way more than seemed necessary for a guy who ran high school. Nigeki's father's office back home wasn't nearly that big. Only the "war room" where he had reports coming in from all the investigators was that size.

"Hitoribo-san…I'm pleased to hear of your success," the Headmaster said, the words seeming to echo slightly as they escaped the darkness of his hood. _Did he wear that everywhere_ , Nigeki found himself wondering. The first time he'd met the Headmaster it had seemed kind of intimidating, but now that he was working for the guy, sort of, the hood was just starting to look weird.

"Was that the kind of thing you had in mind when you asked me to do you favors to stay in school?"

"No. This was an unforeseen emergency, but you and your assistants did quite well responding to such a situation on short notice."

Nigeki knitted his brow. "Assistants?" Was Toriel blushing as he said the word? "Look, thanks, but is that all you called me down here for?"

"Indeed not. I wanted to tell you that while I was away I tried to look into the nature of a Sacred Gear called the Joining Nexus with some of my colleagues. None had heard of such a one, but there was one who had an interesting theory…she thought that if it could join its user with one monster, why not more than one?" the Headmaster explained.

"I…that'd pretty intense, I guess," Nigeki answered lightly. The idea of joining with one person was still kind of heavy, a couple at a time was more than he was ready for.

The Headmaster's hood bobbed in a nod. "We discussed something else while I was away, also. Have you heard anything about a 'Man Who Speaks in Hands', Hitoribo-san?"

Toriel raised a hand to her mouth at the question, but the Headmaster didn't seem to notice. "No…I haven't. Should I have?" Nigeki asked.

"Not necessarily, but I need you to be my eyes and ears, Hitoribo-san. If you hear anything, or hear that someone else has heard something, you need to find out everything and then relay it to my office immediately. We've reason to believe this 'Man Who Speaks in Hands' has a strong interest in you, and I'm worried what his interest could be."

Nigeki nodded, but turned and walked away without another word. He wondered what that was too, and just what Joining Nexus had to do with it.

* * *

"Not a **word** out of you, Belmont!"

"I haven't said a thing since we left Hell," replied Simon, who hadn't. He couldn't quite hide a smirk at the look of angry humiliation on BB Hood's face, no matter how far she pulled her namesake over her head. She looked so mad he was surprised puffs of smoke weren't gushing out her ears.

"Well, I'd like to hear you say something," said a man in a crisp black suit who walked out of the shadows at the end of the hall. It was Robert Blacher, the AGES branch chief the pair reported to. "Like what happened to your escort."

"They didn't make it back," Hood replied quickly before Simon had the chance to answer for them. "We were sent to Hell, weren't we?"

Blacher looked over at Simon. "Is that true?"

"Are you saying you don't believe my account of it?" Hood huffed.

"I'm saying I need to hear ALL the details. The board will want to know everything about how such a high-tier operation went. Well, Belmont?"

Simon nodded lightly. "Yes, they were lost in battle with the Harbingers, but none of them escaped. I saw them all returned to their chains."

"Good. Hood, you're dismissed," Blacher said, and she disappeared further into the branch still huffing angrily. "As for you, Belmont, try not to lose anymore troopers if you can manage it. And try not to risk yourself unnecessarily. I know you're the best, but my superiors devoted an awful lot of capital to enlisting your help. They have a big goal they need your help to achieve, and we're trying to stick to 'warm-up' missions until then."

For a second Simon stared at him dumbstruck. "You call keeping damned souls from escaping a 'warm-up'?"

"They do, anyway. But don't get yourself killed is what I'm saying. Even your family couldn't get rid of every monster, but with your help we'll have a way soon that finally will," Blacher told him, then walked.

"Yeah…every monster," Simon murmured, thinking of the image of that lifeless young witch who'd sacrificed herself to free not just that vampire girl, but Simon as well…

XXX

 **REAL sorry if this one was kind of a slog. If it wasn't that clear I based these last couple chapters on the old Nightmare/Atmosfear board game series, where the main feature was you'd watch a video of a monster (the Gatekeeper was the most common one) who'd make fun of the players and give arbitrary orders to screw up the game every once in a while. The Harbingers were the characters the players could choose between. That moment when Nigeki thinks Baron Samedi's the Gatekeeper is because the same guy played both characters in the videos.**

 **This was inspired by the video series The Spoony One did on them once upon a time, back when he was still awesome (sad face). That was him collapsing in despair at seeing Final Fantasy VIII in his hands this chapter (I personally have nothing wrong with that game). Anyway, I thought it might be a fun influence on a setting full of monsters…but then my copy of the game actually game and I tried to play it. Again, my apologies if these last couple chapters weren't that great. There was a lot less there material to adapt into a non-interactive story than I thought, more characters running around than there should've been, and it ended up running longer than I should've let it. I apologize and will make more of an effort to keep it under control.**

 **And guess I'll just come out and say it: cousin Laura is Draculaura from Monster High. I was looking for other monster high school-themed shows to help broaden the setting, and based her inclusion on stumbling across an episode where she visits Japan as an exchange student (I was googling "monster high school anime," and one of the things that came up was a short called "Sayonara Draculaura"). "Gravedale" is a reference to another monster high school show. I'd been a little against including something set across the ocean, but then I thought that made it an even better choice because it showed just how widespread the monster world could really be. That should become an element of the story later on.**

 **Happy Halloween!**


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